Israeli envoy: renewable energy co-op top priority in bilateral ties

By Azernews

By Sabina Mammadli

Cooperation in the renewable energy sector in the liberated Azerbaijani lands ranks among the priority areas of interaction between Azerbaijan and Israel, Ambassador to Azerbaijan George Deek said, Azernews reports.

The remarks were made during his visit to Azerbaijan’s liberated Kalbajar region with other representatives of the diplomatic corps.

According to him, Israel has already expressed its readiness to assist Azerbaijan in the field of restoration work.

The diplomat also expressed confidence in the further development of Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region.

It should be noted, that the Israeli Ambassador has recently visited a smart village in Zangilan and hailed the visit in a Twitter post.

“We had an excellent visit lately to the smart village in Zangilan, where Israeli companies are present with their technologies and know-how,” the tweet said.

Further, the ambassador noted that great work was accomplished in less than one year.

“Food security is a key part of our growing partnership in Zangilan and everywhere,” he added.

The inauguration of the first stage of the smart village project in Aghali, Zangilan region, was held on May 27.

In a similar vein, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev received Israeli Agriculture Minister Oded Forer on May 17 to discuss ways of expanding relations in the agricultural sector.

An Azerbaijani-Israeli business forum was held in Baku with the support of the Ministries of Economy and Agriculture, as well as the Export and Investment Promotion Foundation. The forum was attended by representatives of government agencies and companies working in the field of agriculture from both countries.

Azerbaijan regularly organizes visits of international delegations, officials, envoys, journalists, and rank and file citizens to liberated lands to familiarize them with the situation on the ground.

On October 15, President Ilham Aliyev said in a CIS session that thousands of politicians, diplomats, and journalists from many countries visited the liberated territories in less than one year.

Currently, the work is underway to restore Azerbaijan's liberated lands. Azerbaijan will rebuild its recently liberated areas in four stages. The initial stage includes the solution of the issues of governance and security, and infrastructure, while the subsequent stages include the solution of the issues of social services activities, reconstruction, and development of the economy.

In 2021, Azerbaijan allocated $1.5 billion to reconstruct liberated territories, followed by AZN2.2 billion ($1.2 billion) in 2022. These funds will be used primarily to restore infrastructure (electricity, gas, water, communications, roads, education, health, etc.) and cultural and historical monuments.

The liberation of Azerbaijani territories has created a new geopolitical and geoeconomic situation in the region, and the reintegration of these territories into the overall economy will further accelerate the economic development of Azerbaijan.

A Moscow-brokered ceasefire deal that Baku and Yerevan signed on November 10, 2020, brought an end to six weeks of fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani army crushed the Armenian troops and won the victory. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s.

The peace agreement stipulated the return of Azerbaijan's Armenian-occupied Kalbajar, Aghdam and Lachin regions and urged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s. Before the signing of the deal, the Azerbaijani army had liberated around 300 villages, settlements, city centers, and historic Shusha city.