Azernews.Az

By Aynur Karimova

Georgia is interested in further developing cooperation with Azerbaijan in a variety of fields.

This was noted by Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Georgian Foreign Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, at a meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku on October 19.

During the meeting Kvirikashvili, who is on his first foreign visit abroad after appointment to the position, expressed pleasure with the fact that he paid his first official visit to Azerbaijan.

Praising bilateral relations between the two countries, he stressed the importance of developing ties in various fields.

President Aliyev described Kvirikashvili's first visit to Azerbaijan as a good sign of friendly and fraternal ties between the two countries.

Stressing the necessity of actively continuing Azerbaijani-Georgian cooperation in political, economic, humanitarian and other areas, President Aliyev noted the significance of this cooperation in terms of implementing large-scale transport, energy and economic projects, which connect the two countries.

The sides further highlighted the international importance of joint regional projects, including the Southern Gas Corridor and Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, and exchanged views over coordination issues related to the implementation of these projects.

As part of the Baku visit, Kvirikashvili was also received by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov.

The strategic cooperation between Azerbaijan and Georgia is developing from day to day, Mammadyarov told journalists following the meeting.

“We had fruitful negotiations on cooperation in the economic sphere,” he said. “Azerbaijan and Georgia should soon present the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project to the world, Central Asia and China.”

Mammadyarov also noted that President Aliyev will pay a visit to Georgia on November 6.

“We discussed the preparations for this visit, as well as draft bilateral agreements to be signed during that visit,” he added.

Kvirikashvili, for his part, said that Georgia and Azerbaijan have reaffirmed their mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

“The two countries intend to continue and develop the cooperation and play an important role in the energy transit projects,” he noted. “Our countries will continue to make every effort to play transit role between Europe and Asia.”

Kvirikashvili met with Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament Ogtay Asadov and Prime Minister Artur Rasizade as well.

Azerbaijan and Georgia established diplomatic relations in 1992, a year after gaining independence from the Soviet Union. In October 1997, Azerbaijan and Georgia became two of the four founding members of GUAM, an organization that also includes Ukraine and Moldova.

Along with broad cooperation in regional development, transport, and other important economic projects, Azerbaijan and Georgia have had long-standing and successful cooperation in the energy sector. Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR is deeply involved in the energy market of the neighboring South Caucasus republic.

Azerbaijan has long been one of Georgia’s largest trade partners. The trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $1.35 billion in 2014.

Azerbaijan mainly exports petroleum, petroleum oils and gases, gypsum, anhydrite, plaster and other products to Georgia, while motor cars, live bovine animals, bars and rods of iron, and cement are the most imported goods from Georgia to Azerbaijan.

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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova

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