“As a result of free and democratic elections, Mr. Ilham Aliyev, who was re-elected as the President of Azerbaijan with a large majority, made his first official state visit to Turkey this time. If you remember, last year Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan made his first official visit to Azerbaijan after being re-elected as the President of Turkey. This point, which has become a tradition, of course, is not accidental at all, it has already become a value. And it reflects the level of relations between the two brotherly countries. It goes without saying that there can be no talk of any political-economic interests here. This is only the embodiment of brotherly feelings. There is such an experience in the world: there are close friendly relations between states at the official level, but their peoples are not so close to each other. However, the relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey, covering all levels, constitute a great example of the brotherhood and kinship of our peoples.”
Sattar Mohbaliyev, chairman of the Azerbaijan Trade Unions Confederation (ATUC), member of the Milli Majlis, expressed these views to the mass media.
“The services of the leaders of both countries should be specially mentioned in raising our deep-rooted relations to this level. Both the head of our state, Mr. Ilham Aliyev, and the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, take a unified position on all international platforms and deepen the relations between our countries. We cannot forget the moral support of our Turkish brothers in general, led by the honorable Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during the 44-day Patriotic War. The state structures of Turkey showed perseverance in all spheres for the Victory of Azerbaijan. In 2014, I well remember Ilham Aliyev’s reply to Sargsyan at the plenary session dedicated to the 5th anniversary of the Eastern Partnership Summit of the European Union in Prague. At that time, the leader of the occupying country took advantage of the fact that Turkey did not participate in the summit and made biased statements against the official Ankara. Mr. Ilham Aliyev met this harshly and said, “If the head of Turkey is not here, I am here” and gave a worthy answer to the head of the aggressor state and put him in his place. All this is a sign of unshakable brotherhood”, said the chairman of ATUC.
“Also, I would like to emphasize the undeniable services of Azerbaijan and Turkey in bringing the Turkish states closer to each other, developing their relations, organizing and demonstrating solidarity. It is as a result of this that the Organization of Turkic States has become a regional power center and the opportunities to influence international political processes have increased. President Ilham Aliyev also addressed this issue at the swearing-in ceremony and declared that our policy is to strengthen the Organization of Turkic States. Today, tense and complex processes are going on in the world, and there are wars with no end in sight. That is why the unity and solidarity of brotherly countries with the same ancestry, language, religion, and common culture is a necessity. Let’s not forget that the Turkic countries are located in an important geographical area, have high economic potential, and also have rich energy resources and important transportation routes. This opens wide opportunities for comprehensive strengthening of the Organization of Turkic States”, said the MP of the Milli Majlis.
According to him, the visit of President Ilham Aliyev to the brotherly country, the negotiations, and signed documents have an important role in deepening our relations, defining and achieving future goals: “The total trade turnover between our countries, which is at a record level – 7.5 billion dollars, is 15 billion It is planned to deliver to the dollar. Also, increasing the volume of natural gas export, strengthening cooperation in the field of defense industry, and joint production in this direction are among the future plans. We are sure that we will achieve all these goals as a result of joint efforts.”
According to him, the visit of President Ilham Aliyev to the brotherly country, the negotiations, and signed documents have an important role in deepening our relations, defining and achieving future goals: “The total trade turnover between our countries, which is at a record level – 7.5 billion dollars, is 15 billion It is planned to deliver to the dollar. Also, increasing the volume of natural gas export, strengthening cooperation in the field of defense industry, and joint production in this direction are among the future plans. We are sure that we will achieve all these goals as a result of joint efforts.”