Azernews.Az

By Aynur Jafarova

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, who is on a state visit to Greece, was officially welcomed by Greece's President Karolos Papoulias on June 16.

Greece's governmental officials were introduced to President Aliyev. Meanwhile, members of the Azerbaijani delegation were introduced to Greece's President Papoulias.

The two presidents held a one-on-one meeting, during which the sides noted cooperation between Azerbaijan and Greece has been developing successfully in political, economic and other fields.

Noting the existence of ample opportunities for further expansion of the relations, the sides mentioned the importance of Azerbaijan-Greece cooperation within the European Union.

During the meeting, the sides also exchanged views on bilateral relations, international and other issues of mutual concerns.

Following the one-on-one meeting, President Aliyev and his Greek counterpart Papoulias held a meeting in an expanded format with the participation of two sides' delegations.

After the meeting, Azerbaijan and Greece signed several bilateral documents in the presence of the presidents of the two countries.

Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and his Greek counterpart Evangelos Venizelos signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of agriculture and a memorandum on cooperation between European Union and Azerbaijan.

Also, Azerbaijan's Youth and Sports Minister Azad Rahimov and the Greek Foreign Minister signed a memorandum on cooperation in the field of youth issues between the Youth and Sports Ministry of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs of Greece.

After the signing ceremony, President Aliyev and President Papoulias made statements for the press.

In his remarks, Papoulias said the political relations between the two countries are developing.

"This is evident from the very important visits at high political levels carried out between our two countries. Our cultural relations have also markedly intensified," he said.

Noting that the economic cooperation between the two countries is deepening, President Papoulias touched upon the importance of the Trans-Adriatic (TAP) gas pipeline which will carry natural gas from Azerbaijan to Europe via Greece.

He also hailed the acquisition of most of the shares of Greek company DESFA by Azerbaijan's state energy company SOCAR as a positive development.

"At the same time, we have examined the relationship between the European Union and Azerbaijan. These relations are part of the European Neighborhood Policy. During our presidency in the Council of the European Union, we paid special attention to such issues," he said.

In his remarks, President Aliyev said the political relations between Azerbaijan and Greece are strengthening every day, and they will become even stronger in future.

"We cooperate successfully within international organizations. In particular, our delegations to the Council of Europe have established a very active cooperation. Last month, Azerbaijan took over chairmanship of the Council of Europe and will act in this post until the end of the year. During its presidency of the European Union, Greece made a great contribution to the development of relations between Azerbaijan and the European Union. The relations between the European Union and Azerbaijan are at a very high level and have acquired a strategic character. The successful visit of European Commission President Barroso to Azerbaijan two days ago has reaffirmed the strategic nature of these relationships," he said.

President Aliyev also spoke about the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"The greatest threat to regional security is posed by the unresolved status of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. For more than 20 years, Armenia has held 20 percent of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory under occupation. A fast settlement of the conflict would bring peace and cooperation to the region. The UN Security Council has adopted four resolutions in connection with the conflict. They demand an unconditional withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories. I do hope that a settlement of this conflict will be possible in the near future, which, as I said, will open up new opportunities for cooperation in the region," he noted.

The Azerbaijani president also said an important part of the bilateral relations is associated with energy security.

"Greek-Azerbaijani relations are of strategic importance here. The TAP project is not only a project of energy security. At the same time, it has raised the friendly relations between our two countries to an even higher level. The Shah Deniz, TANAP and TAP projects initiated by Azerbaijan are currently the largest infrastructure projects in Europe. As a result of these projects, Azerbaijan will export its natural gas to European markets for decades to come," he stressed.

As part of the visit, the Azerbaijani president held several meetings with top officials of Greece, in particular, with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.

During the meeting, the sides expressed their satisfaction with the successful development of bilateral relations between the countries in various fields and noted there are good prospects for expansion of cooperation in the economic sphere, as well as energy, transport, agricultural and other fields.

After the meeting, an official dinner reception was hosted on behalf of the Greek Prime Minister in honor of President Aliyev.

Later, President Aliyev met with Greek Parliamentary Speaker Vangelis Meimarakis, who awarded President Aliyev with the gold medal of the Greek Parliament.

Later, President Aliyev met with Greek Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos, Leader of opposition Coalition of the Radical Left - the major opposition - at the Greek Parliament, Alexis Tsipras.

President Aliyev and the prime minister of Greece also met with top businessmen.

Later, President Papoulias hosted a state dinner in honor of President Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva.

On June 17, President Aliyev accomplished his visit to Greece.

Mehriban Aliyeva receives prestigious awards

Azerbaijan's First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva received the prestigious ELPIDA award by the Association of Friends of Children with Cancer in Greece.

The award was presented to her by President of the ELPIDA Association Marianna Vardinoyannis during a visit to the association which took place as part of President Aliyev's state visit to Athens.

Mehriban Aliyeva met the children being treated at the association and their parents.

Addressing the event, Vardinoyannis praised the Heydar Aliyev Foundation's educational, healthcare, cultural and humanitarian projects in Azerbaijan and in the world.

Vardinoyannis also highlighted the projects of ELPIDA, and its relations with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.

Azerbaijan's First Lady made a speech at the event. She praised Azerbaijan-Greece relations, saying they are based on mutual benefit, partnership and respect.

"Our close relations cover a lot of areas, including political, economic and humanitarian ones," she said.

Mehriban Aliyeva recalled her first visit to ELPIDA.

"I first visited ELPIDA Association five years ago. I was deeply impressed by your achievements then. I would like to express my gratitude to you for your noble mission," she noted.

Mehriban Aliyeva thanked ELPIDA Association's president for the award.

"I consider this award as recognition of what the Heydar Aliyev Foundation is doing in the field of healthcare," she stressed.

Later, Mehriban Aliyeva attached a star with her name to a board featuring the names of the honorary guests who visited ELPIDA.

The First Lady then presented the children with gifts on behalf of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation.

Later, Mehriban Aliyeva and Marianna Vardinoyannis made a tour of Acropolis Museum, and then dined together.

Mehriban Aliyeva also received the Olympic Excellence award of the International Olympic Academy. She was awarded as part of the 54th International Session of the International Olympic Academy for Young Participants in the Greek capital.

President of International Olympic Academy Isidoros Kouvelos handed the award to Mehriban Aliyeva, which honors her contribution to promoting Olympic values.

Kouvelos praised the role of Azerbaijan's First Lady in the development of the Olympic movement.

Mehriban Aliyeva addressed the ceremony to highlight the Azerbaijani government's attention to developing sport, and Azerbaijani athletes' achievements in international tournaments and Olympic Games.

The first lady expressed confidence that the first European Games will be successfully organized in Azerbaijan next year.

Later, Mehriban Aliyeva made a tour of Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art.

Then, the First Lady of Azerbaijan and spouse of Greek Prime Minister Georgia Samaras dined together.