Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister and officials from Arabian states discussed bilateral ties between their countries on May 13.

The discussions were held on the sidelines of the Arab Cooperation and Economic Forum with Central Asia and Azerbaijan in Riyadh.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and his Saudi Arabian counterpart Prince Saud Al-Faisal hailed political relations between their countries, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported.

Mammadyarov praised the Saudi Arabian government for backing Azerbaijan`s position on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

He said Azerbaijan attached great importance to expanding cooperation with the Arab States of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), including Saudi Arabia.

Mammadyarov also said the Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement, signed at the forum, would contribute to the development of trade and economic relations between the two countries.

He stressed that the Riyadh Forum opened ample opportunities for expanding political, economic, and humanitarian cooperation among the Arab League states, Azerbaijan, and Central Asia.

The sides also noted the necessity of combining forces in fighting against international terrorism.

Mammadyarov also met his Tunisian counterpart Munji Hamdi in the framework of the forum, and they discussed ways of expanding bilateral ties in political, economic, trade, and tourism fields.

The two ministers noted the importance of increasing the number of reciprocal visits and creating a consulting mechanism between the two countries' ministries of foreign affairs.

Mammadyarov informed his Tunisian counterpart of the ongoing negotiations to solve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict which emerged in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

He said the withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from Azerbaijan's occupied lands was the most crucial condition for settling the dispute.

Pointing to the UN Security Council resolutions which demand the unconditional withdrawal of Armenia's military forces, Mammadyarov expressed regret over the fact that "Armenia has disregarded these documents so far".

He also noted that the settlement of Syrian Armenians in Azerbaijan's occupied lands, along with other illegal activities violating the Geneva Convention, was what "has impeded the conflict's resolution".

Afterwards, they discussed regional issues and the situation in North Africa.

Mammadyarov also met with his Palestinian counterpart Riyad Al-Maliki in Riyadh.

They expressed hope that the First Session of the Arab Cooperation and Economic Forum with Central Asia and the Republic of Azerbaijan would contribute to furthering relations.

Mammadyarov highlighted the negotiations aimed at solving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, stressing that ensuring the withdrawal of Armenia's armed forces was a matter of high urgency.

Mammadyarov also said Azerbaijan supported the efforts to find a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict.