The application of Israeli technological innovations in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan can be very useful – Ambassador Mukhtar Mammadov – VIDEO

2023-04-20 13:38:00

The application of Israeli technological innovations in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan can be very useful.

Day.Az reports that Mukhtar Mammadov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Azerbaijan to the State of Israel, said this in a private interview to Trend.

“As you know, President Ilham Aliyev has given orders for the implementation of the concept of “smart city” and “smart village” in the territories liberated from occupation, and work has already started in this direction. Today, Israel is one of the leading countries in the world in the field of high technologies. A number of start-ups and various fields of industry they have great experience in terms of applying technological innovations. It will be very useful to apply Israel’s experience in this field in the territories freed from occupation,” the ambassador said.

Ambassador M. Mammadov said that Israel has great experience in the field of agriculture. About 60 percent of Israel’s territory is desert. Despite having very limited arable land, Israel produces and exports agricultural products.

“The issue of irrigation is one of the current global problems. Israel itself had problems in this field. However, today, as a result of the application of leading technologies in the direction of desalination of sea water, Israel is able to provide drinking water to neighboring countries. Currently, negotiations are being held with Azerbaijan regarding the implementation of projects in this field. “In the fields of agriculture, high technologies, and the application of “smart management” models, we can learn from Israel’s experience. During the business forum, it was observed that Israeli companies have a serious interest in working in Azerbaijan,” the ambassador said.

According to M. Mammadov, yesterday the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel, Eli Cohen, also noted that Azerbaijani companies are invited to operate in Israel, and expressed his pleasure to see them in Israel.

“As the embassy, ​​we will closely study the Israeli market and determine the areas where there are opportunities for our companies, investment opportunities, joint production opportunities, and take steps to attract Azerbaijani companies to these areas. As a continuation of the business forum in Baku, a business forum was held in Israel with the participation of Azerbaijani companies in the following years. , the Israeli market can be presented to our companies. Work is also being carried out in Israel in different fields, and Azerbaijani companies also have experience in different fields. Azerbaijan is one of the leading countries in the region in the field of energy. The energy field has become relevant in Israel in recent years, gas reserves have been discovered, and work is being carried out in this direction. It may be interesting for Azerbaijani companies to operate in this direction as well. Since the 90s, Azerbaijan has provided more than 30 percent of Israel’s oil demand. At the same time, serious projects in the field of alternative energy are being implemented under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev. Last year, a memorandum of understanding in the field of energy was signed between Azerbaijan and the European Commission. According to the memorandum signed with Georgia, Romania, Hungary, the export of electricity from Azerbaijan to Eastern Europe will be carried out in a few years. Azerbaijan is diversifying its energy portfolio. Israel is also one of the countries interested in this field, where a number of important projects in the field of alternative energy are being implemented. Negotiations are also underway in this area. It is possible to explore the possibilities of action both from the point of view of mutual exchange of experience and at the same time from the point of view of joint investments,” the ambassador said.

Mukhtar Mammadov also spoke about the priority areas of the embassy’s activities.

“At the beginning of this month, Azerbaijan celebrated the 31st anniversary of diplomatic relations with Israel. During this period, very successful cooperation was formed between the two countries in a number of fields, mutual visits were continuously carried out. We are already observing practical results in a number of fields. The reality is that diplomatic Although the relationship spans only 31 years, interpersonal relations span centuries. A large Jewish community has been living in Azerbaijan for centuries. Apart from the well-known Red Settlement, our citizens of the Jewish nation live in other regions of our country. This element formed the basis of relations between peoples. Historically mixed understanding, mutual respect is an integral part of Azerbaijan’s multicultural way of life. Bilateral relations are built on this strong foundation and are developing. In November of last year, a decision was made to open the embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the State of Israel. The opening of our embassy has already taken place. On March 29-30, the delegation headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Jeyhun Bayramov visited the State of Israel. The official opening of the embassy was held as part of the visit. This event was received very positively by the State of Israel, Israeli citizens and world Jews. As the Republic of Azerbaijan, we have never considered the opening of the embassy as a final goal. This only embodies a qualitatively new page of our relations. The opening and operation of the embassy can act as a tool for further deepening of our relations and consideration of new opportunities. Currently, there is cooperation between our countries in fields such as agriculture, high technologies, education, tourism, and visits are carried out,” the ambassador noted.

Mukhtar Mammadov spoke about the results of the visit of Eli Cohen, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, to Azerbaijan.

“A large delegation led by Eli Cohen was on a visit to Azerbaijan. The third meeting of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission between Azerbaijan and Israel was held as part of the visit. The largest delegation that ever came from Israel to Azerbaijan under the leadership of E. Cohen visited. In addition to the employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 10 states of Israel representatives of the organization, at the same time, the heads of about 20 companies visited Azerbaijan. During the visit, more than 100 business meetings, mutual meetings with more than 30 state institutions were held, very optimistic forecasts were made for the future, and useful discussions were held in a number of areas and an agreement was reached in the direction of deepening cooperation. At the same time, a number of mutual agreements were signed within the framework of the meetings. Agreements were reached on cooperation in education, ecology, innovation, investment attraction. These increased the set goals. We will strengthen contacts and ensure coordination between the relevant institutions of the two countries in order to ensure the implementation of the agreements. At the same time, the activity of the embassy will be very useful in terms of exploring new opportunities for cooperation between Israel and Azerbaijan, studying them more deeply on the spot, and establishing relevant contacts,” he said.

As for the projects and programs to be implemented by the diplomatic mission, the ambassador noted that it is a bit early to say concretely, because the embassy has been operating for less than two months.

“Currently, we are having meetings with official institutions, business institutions, educational institutions, and media representatives in the State of Israel. We have received a very warm welcome in the State of Israel. In all our meetings, the fact that Azerbaijan is a strategic partner of Israel is especially emphasized, and interest in deepening and continuing cooperation in every field is expressed. expressed. Of course, a number of issues were particularly emphasized during yesterday’s meetings. First of all, there is great potential in the field of tourism. Azerbaijan is a very favorable place for Israeli citizens in terms of tourism. There are 8 flights a week between Tel Aviv and Baku, and the flights are almost is full. There is great interest in Azerbaijan in Israel, there are continuous visits to Azerbaijan during various holidays, summer and winter months. Azerbaijan is very well known in Israel, and we think that Azerbaijan has had a very positive attitude towards Jews throughout history, both against the background of mutual relations and at the same time, the presence of continuous flights taking into account, we can say that there is great potential in this area. As the embassy, ​​we will continue to strengthen the relevant propaganda work in order to increase the number of tourists. Tourism representation of Azerbaijan has been operating in Israel for almost two years. During this period, great work has been done in the direction of promoting Azerbaijan. After that, the embassy will continue this work together with the representative office. Cooperation in the field of trade is one of the priority directions. At the business forum held yesterday with the participation of Azerbaijani and Israeli companies, a number of discussions were held in this direction and goals were defined. Currently, the trade turnover is around 200 million dollars, we believe that it is possible to increase this figure even more. “Reciprocal visits, business forums are very useful in terms of introducing the Azerbaijani market to Israeli companies, and at the same time to the Israeli market to Azerbaijani companies, in order to determine directions of mutual interest and carry out continuous and practical work for their implementation,” M. Mammadov emphasized.

According to him, the staff of the embassy has not yet been fully formed.

“The diplomatic mission has just opened, and certain administrative tasks must be done to ensure the arrival of the full staff. Building and other logistical issues must be resolved. We hope that all logistical issues will be resolved in the coming months and the entire staff will be formed and work towards the implementation of the set goals. will begin. At the moment, the consulate cannot operate, because the relevant procedures in this direction must be completed. Of course, there will be a consular service. There is a large Azerbaijani diaspora in Israel, there are approximately 80 thousand people of Jewish nationality who moved from Azerbaijan to Israel, many of them have also retained Azerbaijani citizenship. consular services will be provided. At the same time, visa services will be provided for Israeli citizens. Currently, Israeli citizens do not face any difficulties in obtaining a visa, they can benefit from the electronic visa service, and at the same time, they can apply for a visa on the spot at the airport and receive a visa in a short time.” – M. Mammadov said.