Azernews.Az

By Aynur Karimova

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who is on an official visit to Tehran, was officially welcomed by his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani on February 23.

President Ilham Aliyev arrived at Sadabad Palace accompanied by the cavalry.

A guard of honor was arranged for the Azerbaijani President in a square in front of Sadabad Palace decorated with national flags of the two countries.

President Rouhani welcomed President Aliyev. National anthems of Iran and Azerbaijan were played. The chief of the guard of honor reported to the President of Azerbaijan. The heads of state reviewed the guard of honor.

State and government officials of Iran were introduced to the Azerbaijani president, while members of the Azerbaijani delegation were introduced to Iranian president.

Later, the two countries signed 11 memorandums of understanding on the sidelines of a meeting between President Aliyev and President Rouhani, Trend reports with reference to Iran’s state IRINN TV.

The two sides signed documents for cooperation in various sectors, including transportation, electricity swap, health and medical sciences, oil, gas, and petrochemical, as well as customs, social and women affairs.

Azerbaijan and Iran have had diplomatic relations since 1918. Iran recognized Azerbaijan's independence in 1991 and diplomatic relations between the two countries were reestablished in 1992.

Currently, the two countries are focused on expanding economic ties in various fields, including industry, agriculture, energy, alternative energy, and transportation.

In 2014, the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $186.6 million.

Iran's export to Azerbaijan during the first half of 2015 decreased 55.36 percent to $42.52 million year-on-year. Azerbaijan's export to Iran also decreased 67.11 percent to $11.16 million during that period.

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

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