Azernews.Az

By Sabina Idayatova

Council of Europe Deputy Secretary General Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni met with Azerbaijani ministers and other officials during her visit to Baku that started on Tuesday.

Battaini-Dragoni first held a meeting with Samad Seyidov, head of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and chairman of the parliamentary committee on foreign affairs.

"Azerbaijan will chair PACE after Andorra and Austria," Seyidov said. "The Azerbaijani delegation to PACE has been active at the organization, notifying the PACE about the country's positions and problems, and will continue to work in this direction in the future."

Seyidov regarded the resolution on the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which the organization adopted in 2005, as a success of the two sides.

He stressed that Azerbaijan is the only CoE member, 20 percent of whose territory is under occupation, and has over one million refugees and internally displaced persons.

Seyidov was referring to the land occupied by neighboring Armenia since the 1990s war and the Azerbaijani citizens displaced during the armed conflict.

"Unfortunately, ... some representatives of international organizations take a biased position against our country. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is not only a problem of Azerbaijan, but also a problem of the Council of Europe, and it has a negative impact on the image of the organization," Seyidov noted.

Battaini-Dragoni underlined Azerbaijan's special role in the EU's European Neighborhood Policy and the promotion of intercultural dialogue. She stressed the importance of the CoE Action Plan on Azerbaijan and of the CoE projects implemented jointly with the Baku office.

Culture and Tourism Minister Abulfas Garayev received a delegation led by Dragoni on the same day.

A number of issues, as well as an agreement on the implementation of an intercultural cities project of the CoE in Azerbaijan were discussed at the meeting.

The meeting partcipants noted a variety of international events held in Azerbaijan in the field of dialogue of cultures and civilizations and appreciated Azerbaijan's initiatives in this area.

Garayev thanked Battaini-Dragoni for the development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and the CoE when she held the position of the CoE coordinator in the culture sphere and expressed hope for successful development of relations in the future.

On the same day Battaini-Dragoni met with Azerbaijani Justice Minister Fikrat Mammadov. She voiced the organization`s readiness to expand cooperation with Azerbaijan and praised the Azerbaijan-CE cooperation.

Mammadov highlighted the Azerbaijani government's reforms to modernize the justice system, in particular, increase the number of judges and ensure transparency of their election.
He noted the CE's appreciation of the ongoing justice reforms in Azerbaijan.

Battaini-Dragoni took office as the CoE deputy secretary general on September 1, 2012 for a period of three years.

Since October 2011, Battaini-Dragoni has also been the Director General of Programs at the CoE, responsible for overseeing the preparation and implementation of the organization's biennial program of activities in the intergovernmental field.