President Aliyev's Tehran visit marks milestone in bilateral ties

/By Azernews/

By Aynur Karimova

President Ilham Aliyev’s one-day visit to Tehran marked several achievements, and turned to be a milestone for developing and prospering cooperation between Baku and Tehran.

Baku's thought-out policy on not supporting the Islamic Republic's international isolation has become a key element in boosting bilateral ties between the two neighboring countries and strategic partners in the post-sanctions era.

President Aliyev’s visit also brought to the agenda Azerbaijan's potential to be a transit country for export of Iranian goods to world markets.

Azerbaijan, located at the crossroads of East and West, is considered as the best route for Iran to get an access to the European market.

Eldar Ibrahimov, a member of the Azerbaijani Parliament, believes that Azerbaijan can become a transit country for Iran's access to Europe and to the world market.

Ibrahimov , a member of the working group on Azerbaijan-Iran interparliamentary relations , reminded that during the visit a number of important historical documents were signed between Azerbaijan and Iran.

These documents, covering important fields of cooperation, established a strong base for further expanding relations, he believes.

These documents include an agreement on cooperation in the field of elimination, control and mitigation of consequences of emergency situations, an agreement on mutual administrative assistance in customs issues, an agreement on cooperation in the field of veterinary and livestock health, a framework agreement on the sale of electricity, a framework agreement on coordination of railways of the two countries, an agreement on construction of the border railway bridge over the Astara river, a Memorandum of Understanding between Azerbaijan's State Committee of Family, Women and Children Affairs and Iran’s vice-presidency for women and family affairs, a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation in health and medical sciences, an agreement on cooperation between Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labour and Social Welfare of Iran, a memorandum for cooperation between SOCAR and National Iranian Oil Company and a cooperation memorandum between SOCAR and Ghadir Investment Company in the fields of oil, gas and petrochemical products.

MP Aydin Huseynov, in turn, believes that development of relations between Azerbaijan and Iran can play a significant role in ensuring peace and stability in the whole region.

Following President Aliyev's visit to Iran, it became clear that Baku is turning into one of the main political players in the region thanks to its balanced policy.

"Today, Iran is re-entering the world market. From this point of view, Azerbaijan can play a role of transit for Iran to Europe. It can bring benefits to both countries," Huseynov told Trend.

The Azerbaijani leader’s Tehran visit is among the first visits to Iran after removal of the international sanctions imposed against the country. It shows that the existing relations of Azerbaijan and Iran can be a bright example for majority of countries, MP Aydin Mirzazade believes.

"Despite the fact that we have different political systems, different approaches to a number of issues, both countries strive to maintain good neighborly relations, and to find common ground. Periodically, leaders and officials of the two countries further deepen these relations by making mutual visits," he told Trend.

Azerbaijan and Iran always supported each other in the international organizations, where they cooperate. Today, the two countries play a stabilizing role in the region and namely the fruitful cooperation between the two countries will make it possible to ensure security in the region.

The unity of Tehran and Baku’s positions on solution of the conflict in Syria, territorial integrity and many other issues of the international agenda are the guarantor of success and development of these relations, which are crucial for the region.