By Trend
Next year, Italy, within the framework of the OSCE chairmanship, will try to contribute to the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, said Senator Benedetto Della Vedova, Secretary of State of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation.
Vedova made the remark at the conference dedicated to the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Italy, the Azerbaijani embassy reported.
Vedova highlighted the high level relations established between the two countries in all spheres, Italy-Azerbaijan strategic partnership, efforts by the Italian government to deepen relations, the importance of TAP project and the steps taken by the government for the timely realization of the project, the full support of Italy for further deepening of the cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan.
Chairman of the Standing Committee on EU Affairs of the Italian Senate Vanino Kitty, addressing the event, touched upon the relations between Azerbaijan and the European Union and the contribution that Italy can make to their expansion. He further recalled his last year's visit to Azerbaijan jointly with the members of the commission and informed about the meetings held during this visit, positive impressions of Azerbaijan.
Hikmat Hajiyev, spokesman for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, spoke about the difficulties faced by Azerbaijan in the early years of independence, Armenia's aggression against Azerbaijan and the conflict resolution process, the growing influence of Azerbaijan in international arena, the independent foreign policy of Azerbaijan on bilateral and multilateral basis, and country's success in political, economic, social and other areas.
He stressed that Azerbaijan plays an important role in ensuring stability and security in the region.
Vice President of the Italian Senate Linda Lanzilotta expressed her satisfaction with the strategic partnership established between the two countries, the dynamics of relations in the political, economic and cultural spheres and spoke about the opportunities for further expansion of cooperation between the two countries, as well as the contribution of interparliamentary contacts to the Azerbaijani-Italian relations.
The senator recalled the great geopolitical importance of Azerbaijan for established 'political geography and location'.
President of the Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group Italy-Azerbaijan Sergio Divina, for his part, highlighted the importance of the event, the friendship between Italy and Azerbaijan and the excellent relations in all areas.
Azer Kerimli, the deputy chairman of the working group on Azerbaijani-Italian inter-parliamentary relations in the Parliament of Azerbaijan, spoke about the history of Azerbaijani-Italian relations, cooperation between the two countries in various spheres, mutual visits, the contribution made by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation to the development of ties, importance of the interparliamentary cooperation, the successes achieved by Azerbaijan in the period of independence, as well as the military aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan.
Italian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Augusto Massari, who joined the event via a video call, stressed the importance of strategic partnership between the two countries, the importance of Azerbaijan for Italy and the opportunities that exist for further deepening of ties.
Azerbaijani Ambassador to Italy Mammad Ahmedzade, speaking at the event, informed about the way that led the sides to the achievement of the strategic partnership level, high-level visits, a joint statement on strategic partnership, adopted during the official visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Italy in 2014, an important exchange of experience in the cultural, scientific, educational spheres, in particular the contribution of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, as well as the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), Azerbaijan's expectations in connection with possible contrubutions of Italy's chairmanship in the OSCE in the settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The event, which saw a very large participation, achieved the goal of highlighting all the way done in the relations between Rome and Baku, the many achievements made and to shed light on the new challenges on the horizon of cooperation strategic between the two countries.
The event held at Palazzo Giustiniani Palace on October 18 was one in the series of events organized on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Italy and Azerbaijan, was attended by representatives of the Italian parliament, government, academic circles, diplomatic corps accredited in the country and mass media.