BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 14. Azerbaijani Parliament Speaker Sahiba Gafarova met with a delegation led by Mircea Abrudean, the Acting President of the Senate of the Parliament of Romania, during their visit to Azerbaijan, Trend reports, citing the parliamentary press service .
Gafarova warmly welcomed the guest and expressed her confidence that the visit would contribute to further enhancing cooperation between the two countries and their parliaments. She reminded the guest that Romania was the second country in the world and the first EU state to recognize Azerbaijan's independence.
During the meeting, both sides emphasized the high level of strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Romania and highlighted the importance of high-level visits in strengthening bilateral relations.
The parties also discussed the prospects for inter-parliamentary cooperation, the significant role of friendship groups, and the importance of establishing direct connections between parliamentary committees. Gafarova also noted the productive cooperation between Azerbaijan and Romania in international organizations.
Speaker Gafarova briefed the guests on the current situation in the region following the Patriotic War, Azerbaijan’s struggle against pressure and intentional disinformation from some European countries, and the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. She noted that the text of a peace agreement between the two countries has already been agreed upon. However, as she observed, two obstacles remain for its signing: territorial claims to Azerbaijan in the preamble of Armenia's Constitution and the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), whose activities are no longer necessary after resolving the conflict. Once these issues are resolved, there will be no further obstacles to signing the peace agreement.
The discussion also touched upon the reconstruction and restoration work carried out by Azerbaijan in its liberated territories, the "Smart City" and "Smart Village" projects, the return of residents to their homeland, and the restoration of the rights of Western Azerbaijanis.
In turn, Abrudean expressed gratitude for the warm reception and noted the significant potential for further development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Romania in various areas.
He reaffirmed Romania's commitment to Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, its support in international organizations, including the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and its support for the peace plan regarding Armenia. He expressed confidence in the swift signing of the peace agreement and its potential to provide a bright future for the region.
Abrudean also highlighted successful cooperation in energy, transportation, and other fields, mentioning the memorandum of understanding on the application of the "Asan Xidmet" experience in Romania.
The meeting also included discussions on other matters of mutual interest.
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