Japan, Azerbaijan seek to expand comprehensive cooperation

By Azernews

By Amina Nazarli

Japan puts particular emphasis to the development of comprehensive cooperation with Azerbaijan.

Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Motome Takisawa stressed this as he met with Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov on August 30.

During the meeting, the sides expressed their satisfaction with the current status of the cooperation between the two countries and stressed the great potential and political will for further development of relations.

Mammadyarov noted the successful activity of Japanese companies in different areas in the country and provided opportunities for expansion of the cooperation.

The Azerbaijani FM expressed his hope that Takisawa’s visit will contribute to the development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Japan.

The sides also exchanged views on the opportunities for strengthening cooperation in various fields of the economy, including oil-gas, high technologies, agriculture, pharmacy, education, tourism and other areas.

The parties mentioned the visa facilitation envisaged for the citizens of Japan at the international airports of Azerbaijan with satisfaction. They also stressed the importance of increasing efforts for signing of the agreement on exemption of visa for the persons who hold diplomatic and service passports.

Takisawa hailed Azerbaijan’s support to Japan at the elections within the international organizations.

On the same say, the Japanese delegation visited the Azerbaijani Parliament (Milli Majlis), where the sides expressed satisfaction with development of economic and political ties between the two states.

Leader of the parliamentary friendship group Mukhtar Babayev said that the mutual visits and meetings give impetus to the development of Japan-Azerbaijan relations. He noted that the bilateral relation of Azerbaijan and Japan has deepened over the past 25 years.

The use of Japanese technologies in Azerbaijan has received a wide scope. “The use of Japanese technologies in energy field in our country is 60 percent,” he said.

Babayev said that, currently, Azerbaijan is the most developed country in the region, noting that alongside diversification of the economy, the country creates new production areas. “Now important steps are taken for the development of non-oil sector. These measures are carried out by both the state and private business,” he said.  

The Japanese official, in turn, noted that Azerbaijan is a country with very rich natural resources and emphasized the mutual interest in the development of a wide range of relations between the two countries.

Earlier, President Ilham Aliyev received the Japanese diplomat. Pointing to strong political ties between the two countries, the head of state said that many Japanese companies were involved in various projects in Azerbaijan, and that there were good prospects for relations between business circles.

“Our relations are multifaceted,” President Aliyev said, expressing confidence that the cooperation will be developed and strengthened in the future. He also stressed the importance of this visit in terms of identifying ways of further development of relations.

During the conversation, they noted that there were favorable conditions for elevating the economic relations between the two countries to a new level, and exchanged views on cooperation in the fields of oil and gas, high technologies, agriculture, pharmaceuticals industry, and education.