Azerbaijan, Baku, July 7 / Trend E. Tariverdiyeva /
Ukrainian-Azerbaijani relations, established both in political and other spheres today, have the capacity for a real strategic partnership, Ukrainian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Alexander Mishchenko said in an interview with Trend.
"This is confirmed by the high dynamics of a bilateral political dialogue and indications in the economic sphere," the ambassador said.
The ambassador said that a bilateral high-level body like the one operated by the Ukrainian and Azerbaijani Presidential Council between Ukraine and Azerbaijan is integral. Its meetings are held on a regular basis. The agenda includes the most urgent issues on Ukrainian-Azerbaijani cooperation. In particular, the second meeting of the Council was held during the official visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to Ukraine on October 27-28, 2010. The third meeting was held during the visit of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych to Baku on April 28, 2011, the diplomat said.
The action plan of multilateral cooperation between Ukraine and Azerbaijan for 2011-2015 was signed during the visit of Viktor Yanukovych to Baku. It determines the main directions of bilateral cooperation for the next five years, the ambassador said.
The figures of mutual trade turnover are significant. As of 2010, it totaled $1.6 billion. Thus, it exceeded the pre-crisis level of $1.019 billion in 2008.
"At the same time, it does not mean that the potential of Ukrainian-Azerbaijani cooperation has reached its maximum level," the ambassador said. "We have possibilities for further intensification in all spheres, particularly in the political, inter-parliamentary, economic, energy, transportation, military, technical, aerospace, humanitarian, etc. All efforts of the Ukrainian Embassy in Azerbaijan were aimed at maximal execution of the agreements by President Aliyev and President Yanukovich."
Regional policy and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
Proceeding from the specific areas of foreign policy, implemented by Ukraine and Azerbaijan, both countries are characterized by identical principles with regard to many issues of regional policy, Mishchenko said. Of course, a basic condition for a dynamic and stable development of any region is regional security. Therefore, regional conflict settlement should be a primary basis for further development in any region, the ambassador said.
"I want to reaffirm that Ukraine's position on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement remains unchanged," the ambassador said. "It is based on respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan within its internationally recognized borders."
Ukraine comes from the need to resolve this and other similar conflicts through peaceful negotiations based on the principles and norms of international law, as well as those taken under the relevant decisions and resolutions, the ambassador said.
"We hope that despite differences in the positions of conflicting parties, the negotiation process, with the assistance of the OSCE Minsk Group on the basis of Madrid proposals, will bring concrete results in the form of long-term peace in the region.
Ukraine is ready to assist the work of the Minsk Group within the forthcoming OSCE chairmanship in 2013 and to actively use the period to prepare and direct the leadership to resolve the existing conflicts."