Azerbaijan’s Ismayilli and Japan’s Ito become twin cities
By Sara Rajabova
Azerbaijan's Ismayilli and Japan's Ito signed a twin cities agreement, Azertag news agency reported.
The agreement was signed by head of Ismayilli Executive Authorities Mirdamad Sadigov and Ito Mayor Hiromi Tsukuda in Japan.
Azerbaijan`s Ambassador to Japan Gursel Ismayilzade was present at the signing ceremony.
Speaking to the ceremony, Mayor Hiromi Tsukuda hailed Azerbaijan`s rapid development. He recalled his trip to Azerbaijan in 2012.
Tsukuda expressed confidence that the agreement with Ismayilli would be useful for both sides.
He said the document is the first cooperation agreement between cities of Azerbaijan and Japan, and it will open opportunities for cooperation in the fields of education, health, culture, tourism, sports, local self-governance and natural resources.
Both Tsukuda and Sadigov expressed confidence that the agreement would strengthen relations between their two countries.
Azerbaijan is interested in Japan`s experience in the fields of education, agriculture and tourism, Sadigov said.
He highlighted Azerbaijan`s rapid economic development under President Ilham Aliyev.
Sadigov also touched upon the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which resulted in the occupation of Azerbaijan`s lands.
The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since a lengthy war in the early 1990s that displaced over one million Azerbaijanis, Armenian armed forces have occupied over 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions.
As part of the trip, Azerbaijan`s delegation visited Ito city parliament, Ito city Tourism Association and Skydome trade center.
The Azerbaijani delegation met with Takano Makino, Japan's deputy foreign minister.
Makino said this kind of cooperation is the first between a South Caucasus country and Japan and is important for expanding bilateral relations.
During the meeting it was noted that friendship exchanges between the two cities' schools have began with an exchange of drawing and letters.
Makino said the cooperation in the fields of business, tourism and agriculture between Ito and Ismailly cities will create opportunities for the development of relations between people.
Sadigov, in turn, said Japan's experience in those areas is very interesting for Azerbaijan and the exchange in these fields would be beneficial to both sides.
The diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Japan were established in 1992.
Relations between the two countries continue developing. Japan was one of the first countries to support Azerbaijan's forward-looking oil strategy. Today two major Japanese companies Itochu and Impex are involved in the Contract of the Century. Leaders of Japanese business, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Marubeni, and Sojits are involved in the energy and infrastructure projects in the country.