President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received a NATO delegation on November 6.

Axar.az informs the delegation included the permanent representatives of Türkiye, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Spain to NATO, as well as the deputy permanent representatives of the United States and France to NATO.

Basat Öztürk, Turkish Permanent Representative to NATO, emphasized the importance of President Ilham Aliyev’s receiving the Alliance’s delegation, fondly recalling the Azerbaijani President’s visits to NATO headquarters.

Noting that the foundation of the current stage of Azerbaijan’s development was laid by National Leader Heydar Aliyev, the Turkish Permanent Representative to NATO underlined that under President Ilham Aliyev’s leadership, the country has become even stronger across all areas.

The guests conveyed their congratulations to President Ilham Aliyev on the achievements attained in Washington regarding the advancement of the peace agenda between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

The head of state expressed his gratitude for the congratulations, highlighting the special role of U.S. President Donald Trump in this matter, saying that the agreements reached open up broad opportunities for the development of the region.

Recalling his visits to NATO headquarters, President Ilham Aliyev noted that although support for operations in Afghanistan constitute an important part of Azerbaijan-NATO cooperation, the agenda also includes collaboration between Azerbaijan and the Alliance in regional development, energy security and other areas.

The head of state emphasized that the Azerbaijani Army has been conformed to the NATO standards, highlighting the close collaboration with the Turkish army within this framework. In this regard, he underscored the role of expanding relations between Azerbaijan and the Alliance.

President Ilham Aliyev underlined that since Azerbaijan gained independence at the beginning of the last century, the country has achieved its main goal - the liberation of its lands from occupation, adding that the process of modernization of the country’s army will be continued.

The head of state expressed hope that the visit of the NATO delegation to Azerbaijan would be successful.

During the conversation, the fact that Azerbaijan is a valuable partner of NATO and the Azerbaijani peacekeepers were the last military personnel to leave Afghanistan were emphasized, the services of Azerbaijani Armed Forces in the Resolute Support operation in Afghanistan, and the contribution of Azerbaijan as a regional transport and logistics center in this regard were praised.

The parties also stressed the close friendly and strategic partnership relations between Azerbaijan and the members of the Alliance, noting that Azerbaijan has been actively participating in the NATO’s programs since 1994 within the framework of NATO's Partnership for Peace Program.

During the meeting, the sides discussed the prospects of Azerbaijan-NATO cooperation, as well as exchanged views on regional and global matters.