Azernews.Az

BAKU – Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev praised the outcomes of their talks in Baku on Wednesday, saying the positions of the two long-time allies overlap on all issues.

President Aliyev said Erdogan’s paying a visit to Azerbaijan about a month after the parliamentary elections in Turkey won by his ruling AK party points to the high level of relations between the two countries.

"Indeed, these relations are at the level of partnership and are based on the principles of friendship and brotherhood," Aliyev said. "Our relations currently cover all areas, and Turkish-Azerbaijani friendship and unity have turned into a crucial factor not only bilaterally but also on the regional scale."

The Azerbaijani president said he had discussed a wide range of issues during his one-on-one meeting with Prime Minister Erdogan and the two countries’ positions coincide on all issues.

"And that’s the way it should be, because our historical and cultural bonds are so strong that they play a very important role in the development of Turkey-Azerbaijan relations," Aliyev said.

Erdogan, for his part, said he discussed with the Azerbaijani leader issues in all areas, including the military, politics, economics, trade and culture, as well as regional issues. "We also had the opportunity to discuss steps that we could or will take in the future," he said.

Erdogan said further development of political, military and economic relations will be mulled in detail at the first meeting of the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council due in Turkey. He did not cite a date of the meeting.

The Turkish prime minister praised his country’s economic and trade cooperation with Azerbaijan, saying bilateral trade amounted to $2.5 billion in 2010. In the first five months of 2011, the trade turnover made up $1.4bn and is expected to reach $3bn by the end of the year, he said.

Regarding energy cooperation, Erdogan expressed confidence that the two fraternal countries would take a joint "strategic step" on the exports of Azerbaijani natural gas through Turkey to Europe during Phase 2 of developing Shahdaniz, Azerbaijan’s biggest gas-condensate field in the Caspian Sea.

Asked why Ankara and Baku have been unable for about a year to agree on gas transit fees, Erdogan said respective ministers of the two countries had been instructed to hold talks on the issue on Thursday.

President Aliyev condemned the July 14 terror act that killed 13 Turkish servicemen in Diyarbakir, saying Baku vehemently denounces the actions of the PKK terror group.

"Azerbaijan formally recognizes PKK as a terrorist organization and, as always, stands by the Turkish state and people in their fight against this organization," Aliyev said.

Erdogan thanked President Aliyev for Azerbaijan’s official condemnation of PKK’s terrorist activity.

Aliyev, when asked by a Turkish journalist why his country has not yet lifted visa regulations with Turkey, thanked Ankara for its unilateral cancellation of the visa regime, saying Azerbaijan "is not ready for that yet, but we will do so when we are ready".

In reply to a question whether or not Azerbaijan has a roadmap on recognizing the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), Aliyev said "it is not a simple issue" considering the country’s unresolved conflict with Armenia over Nagorno Karabakh. But he added: "When it is the right time, this issue will find its solution."