PRESIDENT ILHAM ALIYEV MEETS WITH HIS TURKISH COUNTERPART

AzerTag, Azerbaijan
Nov 17 2006

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev today met with his Turkish
counterpart Ahmet Necdet Sezer in Antalya on the sidelines of the
eighth Summit of the Heads of Turkish-speaking States.

Both leaders stressed the importance of the global energy projects
including the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas
pipelines.

Ilham Aliyev and Ahmet Necdet Sezer said the bilateral relations
between their countries are rapidly developing.

They described the Antalya Summit as a success, and stressed its
importance in terms of enhancement of the bilateral ties between the
two countries’ people.

The Turkish President congratulated his Azerbaijani counterpart on
signing the action plan of neighborhood policy with the European Union.

The Azerbaijani leader informed Mr. Sezer on his country’s policy
towards integration into Europe.

Ilham Aliyev also touched upon the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over
Nagorno-Karabakh.

Ahmet Necdet Sezer reiterated his country’s stance on the dispute,
adding it should be peacefully solved in accordance with the principle
of territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

The two presidents also discussed a range of other issues of mutual
concern including the latest developments in the region.