BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 25
Trend:
For the European Union, Azerbaijan has a very important role as a strategic partner in the energy field, the largest trade partner for the European Union, Foreign Minister of Romania Bogdan Aurescu said during the meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Trend reports.
“Our presence here is meant to convey strong message of support from the part of the European Union for the stability and security of the region to see what we can do in terms of post-conflict support in order for reaching as you mentioned, a comprehensive settlement of all pending issues,” he said.
“At the same time, it is a visit which is also connected to the preparation of the Eastern Partnership Summit at the end of this year. For the European Union, Azerbaijan has a very important role as a strategic partner in the energy field, the largest trade partner for the European Union. At the same time, it is the largest recipient of EU investments in the region. So, for us Azerbaijan is essential for the stability and prosperity of the all South Caucasus. We appreciate Azerbaijan as an example of tolerance, multiculturalism and interfaith dialogue. I know that you have done a lot during your mandate to achieve that. It is also important for connectivity and again here with a lot of space for discussion in the future cooperation. In terms of post-conflict developments, we are willing to learn from you. We will visit Armenia and then we will go to Tbilisi as well, to learn from you what can we do in terms of, for instance, confidence-building in terms of post-conflict rehabilitation, in terms of helping destabilization process. We have witnessed certain steps recently, the release of detainees at the same time, the presentation of maps of minefields. We are just supporting further such processes which are important for the confidence-building,” the minister said.