BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 23. Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament, Sahiba Gafarova, and Speaker of the Congress of Deputies of the Kingdom of Spain, Francina Armengol Socias, delivered press statements following their bilateral meeting, Trend reports, citing the parliamentary press service.
Gafarova underscored the significance of the Spanish parliament speaker’s official visit to Azerbaijan, noting that it marks the first such visit by a Spanish parliamentary leader. Recalling her own official visit to Spain in May last year, Gafarova said it was also the first official visit by a speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament to Spain, reflecting the importance both sides attach to developing interparliamentary ties. She added that the active political dialogue observed recently between the two countries has created opportunities for in-depth discussions on the current state of relations and prospects.
Speaking about the bilateral talks, Gafarova said the discussions focused on relations between the two parliaments, with both sides emphasizing the importance of reciprocal visits by parliament members and individual delegations. She highlighted that cooperation and mutual support within international parliamentary organizations are of great importance and noted that there are strong opportunities to further expand ties between the parliaments. According to her, Armengol Socias’ visit confirms the shared intention to make use of these opportunities.
In her statement, Armengol Socias described the discussions as constructive, close, and productive, adding that it was a great honor for her to be in Azerbaijan as Speaker of the Spanish Congress of Deputies. She said the visit serves the goal of strengthening relations between the two countries and emphasized Spain’s desire to further consolidate shared values and maintain a high level of dialogue. Parliamentary diplomacy, she noted, is an important tool for enhancing mutual understanding and trust between countries and for contributing to regional stability.
Armengol Socias also said Spain highly appreciates the progress achieved in the normalization process between Azerbaijan and Armenia following the agreement signed at the Washington meeting on August 8, 2025. She expressed hope that, if appropriate conditions are created, the process will result in a peace agreement that ends the decades-long conflict in the Karabakh region and opens a new era of progress and cooperation.
She further noted that a shared determination to deepen bilateral relations between Spain and Azerbaijan is clearly evident. The talks also addressed the importance of expanding the scope of existing agreements, such as memorandums of understanding (MoU) in tourism and education. The Spanish Congress speaker said both countries are working jointly to strengthen interparliamentary ties and added that Azerbaijan and Spain have also agreed to cooperate in the development of green energy.
“This is my first visit to Azerbaijan. We must further strengthen our cooperation. Deputies from both sides are doing significant work to enhance ties between our parliaments,” Armengol Socias said.
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