16:45

On July 4, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian met in Khankendi.

Axar.az reports that during the conversation, the heads of state emphasized that Azerbaijan and Iran are friendly, neighboring, and brotherly countries, and noted the existence of kinship and brotherly relations between our countries in terms of culture, faith, traditions, and ethnicity.

The Azerbaijani head of state accepted the invitation and expressed his gratitude to President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian for participating in the 17th Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization, and said that his visit and the meeting held were important in terms of discussing Azerbaijan-Iran bilateral relations, as well as cooperation issues within the framework of the Economic Cooperation Organization.

Stressing that Masoud Pezeshkian's official visit to Azerbaijan in April of this year opened a new page in bilateral relations, President Ilham Aliyev noted that the heads of the intergovernmental commission and relevant state agencies were consistently working to implement the topics discussed during that visit.

The head of state stated that immediately after the conflict between Israel and Iran, these actions against Iran were condemned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan. President Ilham Aliyev once again conveyed the condolences of the Azerbaijani side to the Iranian people in connection with the deaths of Iranian officials and civilians in this conflict, and expressed the solidarity and support of the Azerbaijani state and people with the Iranian state and people. The head of state emphasized that Azerbaijan has always been a supporter of truth and justice. President Ilham Aliyev noted that the development of relations with Muslim countries, including neighboring states, is one of the priority directions in Azerbaijan's foreign policy.

Stressing that the Economic Cooperation Organization Summit will be held in the city of Khankendi in Azerbaijan and that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Summit will be held in Azerbaijan next year, the head of state assessed all this as another example of the trust and respect of the Islamic world for the country.

The President of the Islamic Republic of Iran also expressed his congratulations on the high-level organization of the Economic Cooperation Organization Summit.

Recalling his official visit to Azerbaijan and the meetings held with satisfaction, Masoud Pezeshkian emphasized that a new page had been opened in Azerbaijani-Iranian relations as a result of the visit, noting in this regard the increase in air flights between Baku and Tehran, Baku and Tabriz, the work being carried out on the construction of the Aghband-Kalala highway bridge, and touched upon cooperation issues in other areas.

The Iranian President expressed gratitude for the support and solidarity shown by Azerbaijan during the conflict with Israel.

A detailed exchange of views was held at the meeting on issues of mutual interest, as well as on expanding relations within the framework of ECO.