Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

Croatian Defense Minister Ante Kotromanovic started a three-day official visit to Azerbaijan on Wednesday.

The delegation led by Kotromanovic was hosted by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Defense Minister Safar Abiyev.

During his meeting with the Croatian minister, President Aliyev praised the current level of bilateral relations.

The president said Azerbaijan and Croatia have tremendous opportunities to further develop cooperation in various fields, including economics and the military.

The Azerbaijani leader expressed confidence that the Croatian minister`s visit would be a success.

Minister Kotromanovic said the people of Azerbaijan and Croatia share similar history and enjoy close friendship ties.

The minister pointed out that the relations between the two countries were successfully developing.

Azerbaijan and Croatia signed a memorandum on military cooperation during Kotromanovic's visit, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said.

From the Azerbaijani side, the document was signed by Minister Abiyev.

The sides discussed prospects of military cooperation, exchanged views on the military and political situation in the region, and obstacles in the way of the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Kotromanovic expressed Croatia's interest in cooperation with Azerbaijan in the military field.

Azerbaijan and Croatia established diplomatic relations on January 26, 1995.

A number of high-level reciprocal visits and meetings have taken place between the two countries, including the visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Croatia in 2005 and of Croatian President Stjepan Mesic to Azerbaijan in 2007, which resulted in the signing of bilateral agreements in a number of areas and laid a solid foundation for further strengthening of bilateral relations.

Development of economic relations is one of the top priorities in the Azerbaijani-Croatian relations, as seen from the gradually growing bilateral trade.