Azerbaijan, Baku, November 26 / Trend /
Cooperation, interaction in various industries, agriculture, power engineering, and tourism will be of great significance and benefit either Azerbaijan or Dagestan (and Russia on the whole), Magomedsalam Magomedov, President of the Republic of Dagestan, told the Azerbaijani Economic Development Minister Shahin Mustafayev at an official meeting, news agency RIA Dagestan reported.
Mustafayev leads a team, which attended an Azerbaijani-Russian business forum in Makhachkala yesterday. The team's visit is in line with instructions issued by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev under accords concluded during the visit of Alexander Khloponin, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Government and Russian President's Plenipotentiary Envoy to the North Caucasus Federal District (NCFD), to Baku in October.
"Azerbaijan demonstrates high paces of economic development. It has accumulated a good potential of investment development and implementation of investment projects. We are at the beginning of this way. It is so pleasant that representatives of NCFD other subjects also will partake in our forum. I think the good initiation in Baku will be continued today. I am sure that we will be able to implement very good, serious specific projects," Magomedov said.
Shahin Mustafayev said him-led team consists of about 45 business people representing Azerbaijan's biggest holdings and business structures as well as heads and employees of state agencies, which are eager to establish economic cooperation with the NCFD, particularly, Dagestan.
"Another agreement of economic and cultural cooperation was signed during the latest visit of the Russian team to Azerbaijan. All this creates favorable legal grounds for development of our relations. Of course, it would be wrong not to take use of these opportunities. For our part, we establish every condition to provide Azerbaijani business's presence in the North Caucasus, particularly, Dagestan. We have already initiated specific projects. I think our business will be a better success later. On our next visits, we will examine the initial results and further plan our joint actions," Mustafayev noted.
Russia lately invested more than $400 million in the economy of Azerbaijan. "Given that we have established favorable conditions for investors, Russian investments flight to our economy goes on," the Minister added.
Mustafayev enumerated several examples noting that the Azerbaijani business already operates within the NCFD in the fields of construction, agriculture, etc.
Dagestani Economic Minister Marat Ilyasov informed the participants of the business forum of Dagestan's economic and investment potential, and noted that investment projects in different fields have been specified as the key factor of Dagestan's economic development. Favorable conditions have been established for that in either the NCFD or Dagestan.
Heads of other ministries and bodies of Dagestan also noticed the possibilities of attraction of investments from Azerbaijan and cooperation with Azerbaijani businesses.
Speaking at the event, heads of the teams of NCFD subjects, particularly, the Stavropol region, Kabardino-Balkaria, Ingushetia, and Chechnya also invited Azerbaijani business people to visit their respective republics to acquaint with the investment potential there.
For his part, Dagestani Vice Prime Minister Rizvan Gazimagomedov said the Government of Dagestan suggested holding the Days of Dagestan in Azerbaijan and the Days of Azerbaijan in Dagestan to help strengthen cultural and economic interrelations.