The European Union can give a mandate to Azerbaijan in the autumn of 2016 to start the talks on the new strategic partnership agreement, Azerbaijan's Deputy Foreign Minister Mahmud Mammad-Guliyev told reporters in Baku on June 16.

He noted that currently, the discussions on the new agreement continue between the two parties in a positive vein.

Further, Mammad-Guliyev pointed out that a meeting is expected between Azerbaijan and the representatives of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva in early July.

"All the documents have been submitted to the WTO office and we are waiting for an answer," he said. "If such a meeting is held, Russia and Saudi Arabia can also join it."