Azernews.Az

By Amina Nazarli

The European Union is keen on establishing excellent relations with Azerbaijan, said Sajjad Karim, the head of the delegation of EU-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committee as he met with Speaker of Azerbaijan's Parliament Ogtay Asadov on September 21.

Head of the EP delegation praised the negotiations they held in Baku, noting that both sides had obligations to their people, Azertac reported.

“That's why in order to advance, without going back to those in the past, we must conduct sincere dialogues and look forward to the future with hope. There are common values that unite both Azerbaijani and European peoples. Azerbaijan is an important country for Europe and we are keen on establishing excellent relations with this country,’ Sajjad Karim said.

Hailing the importance of the visit, Asadov noted that it would contribute to restoring relations between Azerbaijan’s parliament and the European Parliament, which suffered a major setback a year ago.

He said the EU-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Cooperation Committee is the only platform for cooperation on the bilateral basis at the level of legislative bodies. He underlined the Azerbaijani Parliament's interest in advancing ties with the EU in both bilateral and multilateral formats.

“The development of relations based on mutual respect and equality is of pivotal importance. The relationship that features biased resolutions and attempts to put pressure on Azerbaijan is unacceptable for us. Our cooperation must be based on mutual respect and equal treatment,” Asadov added.

Deputy speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament Valeh Alasgarov, in turn, spoke of Azerbaijan-EU relations. Recalling the European Parliament's biased decisions against Azerbaijan, Alasgarov noted that this kind of behavior did not serve the interests of the peoples of Azerbaijan and Europe.

He said that double standards within certain organizations as well as among the members of the European Parliament towards the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict also did not contribute to regional development and peace.

Member of the European Parliament Iveta Grigule, for her part, hailed Europe's interest in cooperation with Azerbaijan and apologized on behalf of the group, which she represented for the European Parliament's biased resolutions on Azerbaijan.

She expressed her hope that cases of such kind would not be repeated in the coming years. “The interests of both sides require this,” she added.

Head of the Administration of Azerbaijan Parliament Safa Mirzayev, Chairmen of the Parliamentary Committee Samad Seyidov and Fuad Muradov, Head of the country`s delegation to the European Union Fuad Isgandarov, as well as Head of EU Delegation in Azerbaijan Malena Mard and other officials were also present at the meeting.

Yesterday, the 13th meeting of the European Union (EU)-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Committee (PCC) was held in Baku.

As part of the visit, the EP delegation also had meetings with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev and Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammad-Guliyev.

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Amina Nazarli is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli

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