WALID AL-MOALEM: SYRIA SUPPORTS SOVEREIGNTY AND TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY OF COUNTRIES

APA
June 3 2009
Azerbaijan

Baku. Lachin Sultanova – APA. "The trade turnover between Azerbaijan
and Syria will increase after Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is put into
operation," Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said at the
briefing after meeting with his Syrian counterpart Walid Al-Moalem,
APA reports. Elmar Mammadyarov said that ongoing processes in the
Near East, Syria’s position on it, settlement of Nagorno Karabakh
conflict and Azerbaijan’s position on it, expansion of political,
economic and humanitarian cooperation between the two countries were
discussed at the meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister.

"Great Azerbaijani poet Imadeddin Nasimi was buried in Syria. We
asked Syria to offer opportunities for Azerbaijani tourists to visit
the poet’s grave in Syria," he said.

Walid Al-Moalem said he was in Azerbaijan three years ago and expressed
his satisfaction with the changes in Baku. He said they discussed
with his Azerbaijani counterpart the visit of Syrian President Bashar
Al-Assad and his wife to Baku. The Minister considers that this visit
will pave the way for the development of the relations between the two
countries. Touching on the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict,
Syrian Minister said his country supports and respects international
norms, sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries.

"During my meetings here and in Armenia I said if Nagorno Karabakh
conflict remains unsolved, it will harm the region and Syria," he said.

Walid Al-Moalem mentioned that since 1968 Syria and Israel had
territorial dispute over Golan Heights, Syria is trying to solve the
problem in a political way, but lack of political will of Israeli
leadership impedes the solution to the conflict.

"I hope the political will of Azerbaijani and Armenian leadership
concerning the Nagorno Karabakh conflict will produce results
tomorrow," he said.