South African Republic looks forward to enhance ties with Azerbaijan
By Sara Rajabova
The bilateral relations between Azerbaijan and South African Republic were discussed during Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov's visit to this country.
During the visit, Mammadyarov met with Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of the South African Republic Maite Nkoana-Mashabane on February 21, the South African Republic's Foreign Ministry said.
At the joint press briefing, Nkoana-Mashabanesaid said her government attaches great importance to the ties with Azerbaijan and looks forward to further enhancing the relations
Nkoana-Mashabane said Azerbaijan is a rapidly developing young democracy with a steadily growing economy and a stable political system and today, it is ranked among the world's leading oil and gas producers following the intense investment and development of its reserves since independence.
"This led to unprecedented economic growth and expansion. Therefore, it is our hope that South Africa and Azerbaijan can learn from each other in order to enhance the quality of life of the people of our countries," she said.
Nkoana-Mashabane noted that the discussions between the ministers have resulted in the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Regular Political Consultations.
"The MoU is an important starting point for the development of the necessary legal instruments for the strengthening of our relations," Nkoana-Mashabane said.
She also added that there is a wide scope for the development of mutually beneficial relations in various fields such as energy, defense, education and skills development, trade and investment.
"There is still significant work to be done to realize our goals in these areas and the Protocol on Political Consultations that we have just signed is an important starting point for our relations," Nkoana-Mashabane said.
She also congratulated Azerbaijan on the completion of its first tenure in the UN Security Council.
Diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and South African Republic were established on April 29, 1992. The Azerbaijani embassy in the South African Republic was opened in August 16, 2011.
Following South African Republic, Mammadyarov plans to visit Mozambique and Botswana.
During the visit the minister will hold meetings with officials of these countries, and discuss issues of bilateral cooperation. Plans are to sign bilateral documents on cooperation as well.