2023-12-08 17:22:00
On December 8, Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova received the delegation led by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Maria Peychinovich Burich.
According to the information provided by the Parliament to Day.Az, during the meeting, views were exchanged on the existing cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Council of Europe (CoE). The chairman of the Milli Majlis noted the work done within the framework of Azerbaijan’s cooperation with the Council of Europe, the implemented joint programs, and evaluated the new Action Plan covering the years 2022-2025 as an important tool for deepening relations. Maria Peychinovich Burich emphasized that Azerbaijan is a valuable member of the Council of Europe. He noted the active participation of the Azerbaijani parliamentary delegation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. He said that our country has joined a number of important conventions and said that the parliament has an important role in this matter.
At the meeting, Speaker of Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova gave detailed information about the processes taking place in the region. The Speaker of the Parliament talked about the work done in the direction of restoration and reconstruction of our territories freed from occupation, Azerbaijan’s initiatives to normalize relations with Armenia and sign a peace treaty. The guest was also informed about the causes, essence and results of the local anti-terrorist measures carried out in the Karabakh region in September of this year. It was stated that these measures were carried out in accordance with international law, no violence against the civilian population was recorded, and Azerbaijan restored its sovereignty.
The chairman of the Milli Majlis noted that today there is no obstacle to signing a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia. In this sense, the joint statement adopted between the Administration of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia was evaluated as an important step for advancing the mutual peace agenda. It was characterized as an important aspect of the statement that both countries expressed their agreement to continue discussions for the implementation of additional confidence-building measures in the near future and that the parties called on the international community to support these efforts.
In this context, the possibilities of the Council of Europe to play the role of a platform that can contribute to the confidence-building processes between Azerbaijan and Armenia were touched upon. The chairman of the Milli Majlis considered it necessary to avoid taking steps that distort the current realities, damage the process of normalization between the two countries, and harm the prospects of signing a peace agreement soon. .
During the conversation, the General Secretary of the Council of Europe expressed his appreciation for the steps taken by our country in the direction of ensuring lasting peace in the region. Maria Pejcinovich Burich emphasized that the Council of Europe is ready to contribute to the trust-building processes between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
At the meeting, where other issues of mutual interest were discussed, the chairman of the international relations and inter-parliamentary relations committee of the Milli Majlis, the head of the PACE delegation Samad Seyidov, the permanent representative of Azerbaijan to the Council of Europe Ambassador Fakhreddin Ismayilov, the head of the Baku office of the Council of Europe Ambassador Petr Zix and other officials participated.
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