Azernews.Az

BAKU – President Ilham Aliyev has said Azerbaijan is keen on further strengthening its relations with Russia that are developing "consistently and effectively."

"We have high-level political ties, thanks to which we are making decisions that are yielding real benefits," President Aliyev said in an interview with Russia 24 TV channel. "As a rule, we describe our relations as a strategic partnership."

Aliyev said Azerbaijan and Russia are also expanding their economic cooperation. He said that though bilateral trade turnover somewhat decreased during the crisis period, it is currently on upward trend.

The president noted that Russia is of tremendous importance for Azerbaijan as a market for its goods.

"It is also our main partner in imports. A large volume of the goods imported to Azerbaijan comes from Russia."

Aliyev also stressed the two countries’ close energy and military cooperation.

"On the latter, we are cooperating more successfully. These are the realities of the past few years," the president said.