“The President of Italy has arrived in Azerbaijan for an official visit for the first time in the history of our bilateral relations. I am sure that this remarkable event will open a new page in the development of our relations,” said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev at the official reception in honor of President of Italy Sergio Mattarella.

“Today cooperation between Azerbaijan and Italy is developing successfully in all directions, including in the political sphere. I would like to particularly emphasize our cooperation in the economic sphere. Italy is the first among the trade partners of Azerbaijan. The trade turnover between our countries and the volume of exports from Azerbaijan to Italy increased in 2017. For many years, there are relations in the energy area. Azerbaijan closely cooperates with Italian companies operating in this field. New opportunities for the Azerbaijani-Italian relations in the energy sector can be opened as the Southern Gas Corridor officially opened in May of this year. Azerbaijani oil is transported to Italy in large volumes. Azerbaijan is in the first place in Italy's oil imports and our country’s share in Italy's crude oil imports is 15 percent. The polypropylene plant, which we have launched today, is a good example of our cooperation in the field of industrial production. Our countries also cooperate in other spheres, including infrastructure, construction, transport and agriculture,” he said.