Azernews.Az

By Nazrin Gadimova

Baku celebrated Lithuania's national holiday, called the 'Revival Day of Lithuania', on February 27.

The ceremony brought together the representatives of the Azerbaijani government and diplomatic corps of foreign countries accredited in the country.

Addressing the event, Chargé d'Affaires of Lithuania's Embassy in Azerbaijan Šarūnė Kubiliūtė said Lithuania has walked a long and glorious path of development after gaining independence in 1918.

"Lithuania declared its independence 96 years ago," she said. "Like Azerbaijan, Lithuania was part of the Soviet Union for a certain part of its history, but never ceased to dream of independence. Lithuania regained its independence on March 11, 1990. Today, Lithuania is a full member of the European community."

Azerbaijan's Taxes Minister Fazil Mammadov conveyed the leadership's greetings on the occasion of Lithuanian national holiday.

"Gaining independence has an important place in the history of every nation. Our nations have been fighting for independence for decades and are well aware of its price," the minister said.

"Lithuania is an important partner of Azerbaijan and we attach great importance to cooperation with this country. Our relations are developing with the growing dynamics and mutual visits, and the work of the intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation makes a good contribution to this," he added.

Mammadov also said Azerbaijan appreciates Lithuania's support for Azerbaijan's territorial integrity in the international arena, as well as during its EU presidency.

Azerbaijan's minister expressed confidence in the further strengthening of cooperation between the two nations.

The Azerbaijan-Lithuania inter-parliamentary friendship group and intergovernmental commission on cooperation between the two countries are continuing their cooperation.

The statistics of Azerbaijan's State Customs Committee shows that foreign trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Lithuania increased by 9.4 percent in the first 10 months of 2013, compared to the same period last year, and reached $17.58 million.

Azerbaijan's imports in 2013 increased by 12.2 percent and reached $15.7 million, while exports decreased by 9.5 percent and reached $1.9 million.

Tourism is another priority for cooperation between the two countries. An international twinning program and a project on consulting services for the development of the Naftalan resort are part of this program.

Providing consultative assistance to Azerbaijan, Lithuania will share its experiences from its famous Druskininkai resort.