By  Trend

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has today received a delegation of the European Union Eastern Partnership ambassadors-at-large.

Ambassador-at-Large for the Eastern Partnership from Estonia, which currently chairs the EU Council, Jaan Reinhold conveyed the greetings of Estonia’s Prime Minister Jüri Ratas to President Ilham Aliyev.

On behalf of the EU leadership and all the ambassadors participating in the meeting, Jaan Reinhold said that the structure he represents pays special attention to relations with Azerbaijan, and the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU develops in a very positive way.

Jaan Reinhold noted that significant progress has been made in connection with the new agreement, and the EU will continue to make efforts in this direction.

As for the Eastern Partnership summit, which will be held in Brussels soon, the ambassador noted that the EU is fully committed to the Eastern Partnership and related projects, and highly appreciates this cooperation. The diplomat reiterated that the EU-Azerbaijan relations are developing positively and dynamically.

Touching upon the last visit of the Azerbaijani president to Brussels, Jaan Reinhold stressed that the structure he represents attaches great importance to this visit, and this in not a coincidence that negotiations on the new agreement began on the next day of the visit.

The cooperation of the EU and Azerbaijan has solid bases in terms of the full use of the existing potential, said Reinhold.

The ambassador noted the importance of development achieved by Azerbaijan in the field of democratic reforms and the great value of experience accumulated by the country in the spheres of freedom of religion, tolerance and intercultural dialogue.

Jaan Reinhold said that, in particular, strategic cooperation in the energy sphere is of great importance.

President Aliyev expressed gratitude for the opinions expressed in connection with the relations between the EU and Azerbaijan.

Touching upon the Brussels visit in February 2017, the president noted that this visit played a major role within the framework of the Eastern Partnership and, in general, in the development of relations with the European Commission.

The head of state stressed the importance of the Eastern Partnership initiative in terms of expanding the relations between the EU and Azerbaijan.

President Aliyev appreciated the signing by Azerbaijan of the strategic partnership documents with more than ten member countries of the organization as a good indicator of ties.

Touching upon the agreement between Azerbaijan and the EU, the head of state said that work in this direction is also continuing very positively.

The president noted that political relations of the parties are developing successfully, the cooperation is multifaceted and covers broad spheres, including spheres of democratic development, multiculturalism, economy and others.

Having said that Europe is the main trade partner of Azerbaijan, the head of state added that ties are developing in the spheres of investment, energy security, transport, and social protection.

President Aliyev appreciated the visit of the delegation in such a broad format as a demonstration of successful cooperation of the parties and expressed hope that this visit will create a good opportunity for the delegation members to witness the development processes ongoing in Azerbaijan and receive even more information about the country.

They also exchanged views on prospects of cooperation of the parties.

President Aliyev expressed gratitude for greetings of Estonia’s Prime Minister Jüri Ratas and asked to convey his greetings to the prime minister.