U.K. committed to strengthening ties with Azerbaijan
By Sara Rajabova
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov discussed with Foreign Minister of the UK, William Hague variety of issues during the working lunch on December 17.
Hague visited Baku to participate in the signing ceremony of a final investment decision on the Shah Deniz-2 project.
During the meeting the sides discussed the successful development of bilateral relations between the two countries in the energy and other fields, the signing of a final investment decision on the Shah Deniz-2 project, the role of Azerbaijan in Europe's energy security and the further development prospects of Azerbaijan and EU relations.
Hague congratulated Azerbaijan on the occasion of the signing of a final investment decision on the Shah Deniz-2 project.
He praised Azerbaijan's support to the maintenance of international peace and security, especially the NATO operation in Afghanistan.
Showing solidarity with the Afghan people and the international community, Azerbaijan joined the International Security Assistance Force (İSAF) operation. The Azerbaijani peacekeeping contingent in Afghanistan doubled in 2009. Currently, some 90 Azerbaijani servicemen are serving in ISAF.
Azerbaijan is among the eight partner countries that have confirmed their presence in Afghanistan after 2014.
Touching the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Mammadyarov said Armenian armed forces' existence in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is a major threat to security in the region.
They also exchanged views on international and regional developments.
Speaking at a press conference on the same day, Hague said the United Kingdom hails the recent meeting of Azerbaijani president with his Armenian counterpart for discussion of the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
"We encourage such meeting to take place on regular base," Hague said.
Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Serzh Sargsian met in Vienna on November 19.
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.