Azerbaijani, Iranian officials mull new cooperation projects
By Vafa Ismayilova
Azerbaijani ambassador to Iran Bunyad Huseynov and Iranian Ardabil Province Governor-General Bahram Behnamjoo have discussed new joint projects, Azertag has reported.
Behnamjoo conveyed his congratulations to the Azerbaijani nation on victory in the 44-day Patriotic War in and around Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh region. Noting that Iran’s Ardabil Province borders with the liberated Azerbaijani territories, Behmanjoo said that Iran was eager to join the restoration process in the liberated territories.
The Azerbaijani ambassador expressed his gratitude to Iran's Supreme Leader Seyyed Ali Khamenei and Iranian officials for supporting Azerbaijan’s just cause and fair position during the war.
The two men also exchanged views on trade and economic issues as well as joint projects carried out on the Azerbaijani-Iranian border.
As part of his first official visit to Iran in early December 2020, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov met the Iranian president, foreign minister and other senior officials, who also expressed interest in post-war restoration in neighbouring Azerbaijan to pave the way for new cooperation projects. To recap, Azerbaijan's 132-km border area with Iran had been liberated from Armenian occupation.
During the meeting with Bayramov, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani stressed the need to accelerate the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway, which is part of the North-South International Transport Corridor, an international economic project. The president added that conditions had been created for the implementation of joint projects between the two countries, including the construction of the Khudafarin hydro junction and power plant. He stressed that both countries can further develop cooperation in industry, science, pharmaceuticals, and other areas.
On November 10, 2020, Baku and Yerevan signed a Moscow-brokered ceasefire deal to put an end to six weeks of fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani army declared a victory against the Armenian troops. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s.
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