Azernews.Az

Azerbaijan and the European Union started negotiations on visa facilitation and readmission agreements in Baku on Thursday.

Azerbaijani chief negotiator, Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammadguliyev, welcomed the beginning of this process as an important step in cooperation with the EU.

The negotiations are aimed at simplifying the transit of Azerbaijani and EU citizens, the fight against illegal immigration and joint efforts to promote legal migration, Mammadguliyev said.

He said the draft agreement submitted by Baku allows students, ailing persons, scholars and people of other categories to benefit from simplified visa regulations.

The deputy minister said Azerbaijan is ready to amend its legislation after the signing of the agreements on easing visa rules and needs the EU’s assistance in this regard.

The EU delegation at the two-day negotiations is led by the deputy heads of the departments for international affairs and visa policy, Rob Rozenburg and Diederik Paalman.

Paalman noted that the sides will try to facilitate the visa regime applied to a larger population.

The agreement on the simplification of visa entry for citizens of Azerbaijan provides for a reduction of the list of documents submitted along with the application for a visa and possible issuance of multiple-entry visas with longer period of validity, thus reducing the cost of visas for particular categories, and setting time limits for processing an application.

Roland Kobia, head of the EU Delegation in Azerbaijan, said bilateral cooperation in the fields of politics, social affairs and energy has further developed in past months. He said a simplified visa regime would promote closer ties both between governments and people.

Kobia said the negotiations on the issue will continue for some time, adding, "I hope that in conclusion, there will be a result meeting the interests of both sides."

The agreement on readmission will, in turn, develop a mechanism for repatriation of those residing in the EU and Azerbaijan without permission.

The EU and Azerbaijan are maintaining relations under the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, which was signed in 1996 and came into force in 1999. In 2009, the EU passed a decision to start negotiations on the conclusion of bilateral association agreements of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia with the bloc. These agreements will be a new practical instrument to replace the bilateral action plans.