(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 25. President
of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has met with President
of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in Moscow, trend reports.
Speaking at the meeting, President of Russia Vladimir
Putin said:
- Dear Ilham Heydarovich. Dear Colleagues.
First of all, I would like to welcome all of you again and thank
the President of Azerbaijan for deciding to join our work within
the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union – as already
mentioned, formally in the status of a guest. But Ilham Heydarovich
is actually right, this is a very conditional title because the
level and nature of the relations between Azerbaijan and all member
countries of the Eurasian Economic Union is of a serious and deep
nature. Trade and economic ties are developing progressively and
serve the development of relations between all our peoples. I would
very much like this to be continued in the future, especially
because the potential for regional cooperation is very high.
In general, Russian-Azerbaijani relations, if we speak about the
bilateral basis, are at a high level and are also progressively
developing on the principles of equality, taking into account the
interests of each other and in accordance with the Declaration on
Allied Interaction signed in February 2022. We are all very happy
about this.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of Heydar Aliyevich
Aliyev. You know our attitude towards this political figure of both
the Soviet Union and independent Azerbaijan. He was an outstanding
political figure, a unifying figure in the history of our
countries. And it is also well known that we worthily celebrated
this anniversary in Russia. Exhibitions were held both in the State
Duma and the Federation Council with documentaries shown on
television. Many events took place in the regions of the Russian
Federation, and not only in the capital but also in Kazan,
Astrakhan, Dagestan, at BAM, where Heydar Aliyevich is also
remembered, including the solemn departure of the Moscow-Tynda
train and events held at Angoya, where the station was named after
Heydar Aliyev, who supervised the construction of the BAM as First
Deputy Chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers. This is an
outstanding construction site of the entire Soviet Union, and it is
associated with the name of Heydar Aliyev.
This is what I would like to say at the beginning, and after the
press leaves us, we will talk about other issues. Please.
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said:
- Thank you very much, dear Vladimir Vladimirovich.
First of all, I would like to express my gratitude again for the
invitation to attend the Eurasian Economic Union summit. As noted
today, this is the first time I have been participating in a summit
of this organization, although, as we have already exchanged views
with colleagues, we work regularly on the platforms of the CIS and
other international organizations and, of course, in a bilateral
format.
I would also like to express my gratitude for such respect for
the memory of Heydar Aliyev. We appreciate this very much, everyone
in Azerbaijan knows this very well. Anniversary events, as you
noted, were held in Moscow, state institutions and in the
regions.
I must say that Heydar Aliyev and you, Vladimir Vladimirovich,
laid the foundations for the current level of relations between
Russia and Azerbaijan. It was after your visit to Azerbaijan in
2001 that our relations reached a qualitatively new level. Today,
we already characterize these relations as allied, not only de
facto, but also de jure. As you noted, at the beginning of the last
year, we signed the Declaration on Allied Interaction, which we are
implementing. It is the most important political document that
reflects the spirit and nature of our relations and the aspiration
of our countries for even closer interaction.
Of course, today we will also talk about regional issues. I
would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for the
efforts of the Russian side towards normalization of relations
between Azerbaijan and Armenia. We very much appreciate these
efforts, and the fact that you will participate in the trilateral
meeting today also shows that the Russian Federation attaches great
importance to Azerbaijan and Armenia finally reaching a peace
agreement. I think that after the recent statements of the Armenian
leadership on the recognition of Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, as
well as the recognition of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan,
indicating specific figures for the area of the Republic of
Azerbaijan, the issue of agreeing on other points of the peace
treaty will be much smoother, because this was the main factor we
could not come to an agreement on.
So once again, Vladimir Vladimirovich, I do hope that we will
take another step in the trilateral format towards normalizing
relations between the two countries today. As for the bilateral
agenda, it is quite extensive. We will go over it in detail.
Thank you again for the invitation.