Oct. 30
President Aliyev: Some foreign circles didn’t believe in BTK’s implementation
Some foreign circles did not believe in the implementation of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway, said President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev addressing the opening ceremony of the BTK railway in Baku.
“They believed that this would not be possible and the technical facilities and financial resources necessary for that would not allow the project to be implemented. However, the three countries have shown and proved that this is possible,” said President Aliyev. “It is possible to do the all work when there is strong will, mutual support, and confidence in each other. The construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is a clear example of this. I am sure that Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, which make the greatest contribution to regional cooperation, will continue to support each other.”
President Aliyev said that the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is the shortest and safest route connecting Europe to Asia. “Through this route, it is expected to transport 5 million tons at the first stage, 17 million tons at the next stage, and then larger volumes of cargo,” noted the president. “In short, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is becoming an important part of Eurasia’s transport map.”
He said that trade turnover and mutual investments between the countries along the railway will increase, cooperation between the countries using the railroad will deepen, and the railroad will serve stability and security.
President Aliyev expressed confidence that with the use of the BTK railway, the development of tourism will gain a large scale and the number of tourists will increase. “Naturally, the successful operation of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will enhance the geopolitical significance of our countries and create additional opportunities for us. The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway will be very important for the development of business, mutually beneficial cooperation,” said the Azerbaijani president.
The head of state noted that big projects as the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway reinforce the three countries’ unity and friendship. “Central Asia, Kazakhstan are showing great interest in this railway project. The participation of delegations, high-ranking officials from Central Asia and Kazakhstan in this ceremony clearly demonstrates this,” said President Aliyev. “We are confident that there will be additional opportunities for the transportation of goods. Traditional friendly relations of our countries with Central Asian countries will also be strengthened with the help of this railway.”
Opening of BTK railway is historic event - Turkish PM
The opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway is a historic event, according to the letter of Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, read out during the official opening ceremony of the railway in Baku.
The railway, which is a joint project of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, reflects not only the level of relations between the three countries, but is also an important part of the historical Silk Road, the letter noted.
The BTK railway project brings together the cultures of the Eurasian continent, said the letter.
“I am grateful to everyone who took part in the implementation of the project, as well as to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” Yildirim noted in his letter.
The BTK railway was constructed on the basis a Georgian-Azerbaijani-Turkish intergovernmental agreement. The railway’s peak capacity will be 17 million tons of cargo per year. At an initial stage, this figure will be one million passengers and 6.5 million tons of cargo.
Azerbaijan, Turkey sign agreements
A ceremony of signing Azerbaijan-Turkey agreements was held with participation of Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, following the sixth meeting of the Azerbaijan-Turkey High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council in Baku. Ilham Aliyev and Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed a protocol of the sixth meeting of the Azerbaijan-Turkey High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council.
A memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of higher education between the Azerbaijani Ministry of Education and the Turkish Council of Higher Education was signed by Azerbaijan’s Education Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and President of the Council of Higher Education Yekta Sarac.
An agreement on cooperation in the field of education between the governments of Azerbaijan and Turkey was signed by Azerbaijani Education Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and Turkish Minister of National Education Ismet Yilmaz.
A memorandum of understanding on signing a preferential trade agreement between the governments of Azerbaijan and Turkey was signed by Azerbaijani Economy Minister Shahin Mustafayev and his Turkish counterpart Nihat Zeybekci.
An agreement on cooperation in the field of defense industry between the governments of Azerbaijan and Turkey was signed by Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov and Turkish Minister of National Defense Nurettin Canikli.
An agreement on cooperation in the sphere of production and certification of seeds of forage plants between the governments of Azerbaijan and Turkey was signed by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Azerbaijan’s healthcare sector to get benefits for buying software
The Azerbaijani healthcare sector will receive preferential terms for the purchase of Microsoft software products, Nariman Ramazanov, founder and managing partner of Azerbaijan’s FINA LLP, told Trend.
He noted that currently, these preferences apply to a number of the country’s state agencies, including the Azerbaijani Ministry of Taxes.
“There are certain categories of users who get licenses of Microsoft products on favorable terms. They are educational and medical institutions. This practice is applied by the Microsoft company worldwide,” Ramazanov said.
Microsoft Azerbaijan has earlier said that more than 30 state agencies in the country have already switched to Microsoft licensed software.
Oct. 31
Ilham Aliyev: Turkey-Azerbaijan relations stand at highest peak
Turkey-Azerbaijan relations are at the highest level and at the highest peak, Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev told the sixth meeting of the Azerbaijan-Turkey High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council, held with participation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Baku.
Addressing the meeting, President Aliyev welcomed the guests.
“Mr. President, we attach great importance to your visit. Today, we have discussed a number of issues at the one-on-one meeting,” said President Aliyev.
“Our views on the development of our relations coincide,” noted the president.
He expressed confidence that the meeting of the Azerbaijan-Turkey High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council will also be very successful.
“There are many issues on the agenda – political relations, joint activities in international organizations, economic cooperation, military, military-technical cooperation, and of course, energy and transportation issues,” said President Aliyev, adding that there are very good results in all spheres.
“Our decisions are being implemented and the intergovernmental joint commission is also operating very successfully,” added the president.
The head of state expressed confidence that the issues, to be discussed today, will also bring good results.
Doing Business 2018: Azerbaijan in Top 3 in region for reforms
Azerbaijan entered the top three in Europe and Central Asia region in the global Doing Business 2018 rating, Executive Director of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communications Vusal Gasimli said at a press conference. The World Bank Group (WB) published an updated report Doing Business. Azerbaijan ranked 57th among 190 countries in the Doing Business 2018. The distance to frontier score stood at 70.19. This is while in the previous report, Azerbaijan ranked 65th and scored 67.07.
Gasimli said in the updated rating, Azerbaijan has improved its positions on six out of 10 indicators: access to electricity (improvement by three steps from the previous rating), property registration (one step), protection of the rights of small investors (22 steps), tax payment (five steps), execution of contracts (six steps), resolution of issues related to bankruptcy (39 steps). Azerbaijan made the greatest progress on the indicator over "resolution of issues related to bankruptcy" (39 steps). "I would like to especially note that a number of economic reforms carried out under the leadership of the head of state played an important role in the improvement of the six-point indicators: first, over 200 amendments were made to the tax legislation in late 2016. In fact, this served to improve the indicators of the country on the indicator "payment of taxes" for five steps, One can also hail the work carried out to improve access to credit, including the creation of a Private Credit Bureau, the adoption of the law "On the encumbrance of movable property" and others,” he said. He stressed that Azerbaijan will continue to improve its positions in international ratings in the future. As for the worsening of the indicators of Azerbaijan on a number of points, Gasimli noted that the reforms in these spheres were carried out, but they will be taken into account already in the next rating.
Azerbaijan improves position in WB Doing Business
Azerbaijan is among notable reformers in Europe and Central Asia region, the World Bank said in its Doing Business 2018 report.
Azerbaijan ranked 57th among 190 countries in the Doing Business 2018. The distance to frontier score stood at 70.19. This is while in the previous report, Azerbaijan ranked 65th and scored 67.07.
The rankings are based on the average of each economy’s distance to frontier scores for the 10 topics included in this year’s aggregate ranking. This measure shows how close each economy is to global best practices in business regulation. A higher score indicates a more efficient business environment and stronger legal institutions. Thus, Azerbaijan’s position in this report has improved compared to the last year's report.
The World Bank said that during the reporting period, Azerbaijan has carried out four reforms, as compared to three during the previous reporting period.
“The region’s economies perform well in the Doing Business areas of Protecting Minority Investors (with an average rank of 47) and Registering Property (47). Economies in the region have efficient land registries and it takes only 20 days to transfer a property, 2 days less than the average across OECD high-income economies,” said the report.
However, the World Bank analysts noted that the region underperforms on Dealing with Construction Permits (88) and Getting Electricity (86).
Powers of municipalities to be expanded in Azerbaijan
The powers of municipalities regarding collection of information on accounting, cadastre and monitoring of green spaces will be expanded in Azerbaijan in accordance with the amendments to the law “On protection of green spaces” adopted by the Azerbaijani Parliament.
Thus, according to Article 12.3 (Accounting, cadastre and monitoring of green spaces), information on accounting, cadastre and monitoring of green spaces, according to the legislation on obtaining information about the environment, will be collected by the relevant executive authority and posted on its official website.
In accordance with the amendments, the powers of municipalities will be expanded, and the municipalities, just like the relevant executive authorities, will collect information on accounting, cadastre and monitoring of green spaces.
Municipalities, non-governmental organizations and the population will be supplied with plant material, equipment, inventory and other means for landscaping purposes for free by the relevant executive authority, according to the amendments.
When planting and restoring green spaces, the relevant executive authority will allocate land plots for the placement of plant material.
In accordance with the amendment to Article 14.7 (Restoration of green spaces), plant species that are useful from the point of view of gardening will be determined by the relevant executive authority, taking into account climatic conditions and soil characteristics.
Azerbaijan simplifies online order of certificate for e-signature
Azerbaijan has simplified the online order of the certificate for e-signature, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Transport, Communications and High Technologies told Trend.
According to the ministry, individuals and legal entities can order the certificate for e-signature through the Electronic Government Portal or via www.e-imza.az website.
On the Electronic Government Portal, it is possible to apply for obtaining the e-signature via e-services section of the ministry.
E-signature simplifies the access of citizens to electronic services of state institutions that are available on the Electronic Government Portal. Currently, 353 e-services of the total number of approved e-services (455) are integrated into the portal.
Currently, for Azerbaijani citizens the cost of e-signatures issued for three years is 18 manats. Moreover, individuals and legal entities engaged in entrepreneurial activities can get e-signatures for 36 manats and 72 manats, respectively, while employees of state institutions can get them for 58 manats.
Nov. 1
Turkey eyes to set up Association of Ombudsmen of Turkic-Speaking States
Turkey’s Ombudsman Office intends to establish an Association of Ombudsmen of Turkic-Speaking Countries, the Turkish media outlets report.
The decision to establish the Association was adopted following consultations with Azerbaijan’s Ombudsman Office.
In this regard, it is planned to hold a meeting with ombudsmen of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan in late 2017.
"Italy intends to intensify ties with Azerbaijan"
Italy intends to intensify ties with Azerbaijan, deputy chairman of the Italian Senate Linda Lanzilotta said at a meeting with chairman of the Azerbaijani parliament Ogtay Asadov, the Azerbaijani parliament said in a message.
Asadov expressed confidence that this visit will make a new contribution to the development of relations between the two countries.
"Italy is one of the most important trade partners of Azerbaijan,” he said. “The relations are developing. One of the important issues is the development of bilateral relations with Italy and within the international parliamentary organizations. The relations in the economic sphere bring real benefits to both sides.”
Asadov stressed that the talks held by high-level delegations, in particular during the presidential meetings, raised bilateral ties to a qualitatively new level.
"The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Italy amounted to $2.39 billion," he said. “In the future we intend to increase this figure."
In her turn, Lanzilotta expressed confidence that this visit will make a positive contribution to the development of relations between the parliaments of the two countries.
"Italy attaches great importance to the development of relations with Azerbaijan,” she said. “We intend to further intensify relations in various spheres."
The prospects for the development of interparliamentary relations, the issues of further intensification of cooperation in the economic, cultural, humanitarian spheres, as well as other issues of mutual interest were discussed at the meeting.
Head of the Azerbaijani parliament’s office Safa Mirzoyev, head of the working group on interparliamentary relations with Italy Azer Kerimli, Azerbaijani ambassador to Italy Mammad Ahmadzade, Italian ambassador to Azerbaijan Augusto Massari and other officials attended the meeting.
Ilham Aliyev: Trilateral cooperation format is of great importance for regional security
The format of trilateral cooperation is of great importance for regional security, said Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev.
President Aliyev made the remark at a trilateral Summit of Presidents of Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia in Tehran.
Stressing that the first trilateral summit was held in Baku in August 2016 on the initiative of Azerbaijan, President Aliyev said that this format has a wonderful future.
“Our successful cooperation plays an important role in ensuring stability and security in the region,” said Ilham Aliyev, adding that Azerbaijan is the only country in the world that has land borders with Russia and Iran.
“This geographical location allows us to successfully cooperate in all areas,” the president emphasized.
President Aliyev further said that the trade relations between the countries increased, noting that this year, the trade turnover of Azerbaijan with Russia increased by more than 60 percent and with Iran more than 30 percent.
Speaking about the development of Azerbaijan's railway infrastructure and construction of the rail line to the Iranian border, the head of state stressed that the Azerbaijani section of the North-South Transport Corridor is ready for operation. He said that the agreement have been reached on the financing of the Astara-Rasht railway.
The three countries are contributing to the energy security of the world, noted Ilham Aliyev.
"Our cooperation is natural, sincere, and based on friendship and mutual respect," the head of state said, stressing that these relations are of great importance for both peoples and the region.
Nov. 2
First VP Mehriban Aliyeva meets members of France-Azerbaijan Friendship Group
Azerbaijan’s First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva met with members of the France-Azerbaijan Friendship Group of France’s National Assembly.
Welcoming the guests, Mehriban Aliyeva congratulated Pierre-Alain Raphan on his appointment as head of the France-Azerbaijan Friendship Group and wished him success in his work.
Mehriban Aliyeva, who was the head of Azerbaijan-France Friendship Group while being a member of the Azerbaijani parliament, said that the Group’s activity gives momentum to the expansion of ties between the two countries.
The first vice president said she believes that the potential in the two countries’ relations will be better used in the future.
“This will lead to further strengthening of our relations,” added Aliyeva.
Noting that this year marks the 25th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and France, Mehriban Aliyeva underlined that the two countries’ cooperation has been developing over the past years.
She said that Azerbaijan attaches great importance to relations with France in all spheres. Emphasizing that the humanitarian sphere is a priority for the two countries, Mehriban Aliyeva noted that great success has been achieved in this sphere in recent years.
Touching upon the cooperation in the field of education, the first vice president of Azerbaijan spoke about the large-scale projects implemented by the two countries in this field.
She noted that there are French lycée and the French-Azerbaijani University in Azerbaijan that serve the development of the educational system of Azerbaijan, as well as bilateral relations.
Reminding that good cooperation was established between different cities of France and Azerbaijan and agreements on sister cities were signed in recent years, Mehriban Aliyeva said that the first steps in this direction were taken in the field of culture.
She added that the implemented projects are aimed at promoting Azerbaijan in the regions of France.
The first vice president of Azerbaijan praised the steps taken in this area as they have a positive impact on economic relations.
Mehriban Aliyeva noted that successful cooperation was established in many areas and added that there is great potential.
She expressed hope that the friendly relations between Azerbaijan and France and the two countries’ peoples will be further strengthened by using this potential.
Expressing hope that the first visit of Pierre-Alain Raphan to Azerbaijan would be successful, Mehriban Aliyeva wished him success in the future activity.
Head of the France-Azerbaijan Friendship Group Pierre-Alain Raphan, for his part, said that he will work diligently during his term to deepen the cooperation between the two countries.
Ilham Aliyev receives Montenegrin FM
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation of Montenegro led by Minister of Foreign Affairs Srdjan Darmanovic.
The head of state said that the two countries have very good ties covering various spheres, a high-level cooperation format.
President Aliyev recalled with satisfaction his visit to Montenegro, as well as the visits of president and prime minister of Montenegro to Azerbaijan, and spoke about mutual visit of various ministers and other officials and emphasized the importance of all these visits in terms of developing bilateral cooperation.
The president said that the two countries cooperate in various spheres, including economy, energy, investments, trade and tourism.
Touching upon the memorandum of cooperation in the energy sphere, signed between Azerbaijan and Montenegro, President Aliyev spoke about the successful work being carried out in this field and expressed hope that the memorandum will be very useful from this point of view.
He said that Azerbaijan and Montenegro have developed tourism infrastructure, and there is a need for an even greater inflow of tourists in both directions.
Minister Darmanovic, for his part, said that this is his first visit to Azerbaijan, noting that the success achieved by the country in a short period made a deep impression on him.
The minister noted that he is proud of visiting the monument to the national leader Heydar Aliyev in the Alley of Honor, and stressed that the great leader played a big role in the development of Azerbaijan.
Darmanovic added that President Ilham Aliyev successfully continues the national leader’s policy and has achieved rapid development of the country.
President Aliyev expressed confidence that the Montenegrin minister’s visit to Baku will be significant in terms of gaining more impressions about Azerbaijan.
Nov. 3
First VP Mehriban Aliyeva meets delegation led by Vice President of Italian Senate Linda Lanzillotta
First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva has met with a delegation led by Vice President of the Italian Senate Linda Lanzillotta.
First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva expressed her gratitude to Vice President of the Italian Senate Linda Lanzillotta for the friendly attitude and attention towards Azerbaijan. Noting that this year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Italy, Mehriban Aliyeva hailed the existence of successful bilateral relations, which meet mutual interests.
Hailing successful development of Azerbaijan-Italy relations, Mehriban Aliyeva said cooperation between the two countries covers political, economic and humanitarian spheres. The First Vice-President said Azerbaijan makes its contribution to Europe's energy security, noting that the implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project will further enhance Azerbaijan's role in ensuring European energy security. First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva said that having joined TAP project, Italy successfully cooperates with Azerbaijan in this field. Saying that 60 per cent of the construction work of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) has been done, the First Vice-President expressed her hope that the pipeline will be put into operation on time.
Emphasizing development of Azerbaijan-Italy relations in many areas, Mehriban Aliyeva noted that there is a much greater potential. The First Vice-President expressed her confidence that this potential will be used more effectively in the future. Mehriban Aliyeva underlined the possibility of the implementation of humanitarian projects bringing the two countries and nations closer to each other.
First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva expressed her hope that the visit of the Vice President of the Italian Senate to Azerbaijan will give a new impetus to the steps taken in this area.
Vice President of the Italian Senate Linda Lanzillotta thanked for the meeting and expressed her country's interest in developing bilateral relations.
Azerbaijan completes implementation of e-agriculture system
Azerbaijan successfully implemented a project on introducing electronic agriculture system in the country, Ilham Bayramov, head of office of Azerbaijani Ministry of Agriculture, told reporters in Baku.
The project`s implementation started two years ago with the support of the European Union. The EU technical assistance aimed at creating an electronic agriculture system in Azerbaijan amounted to 1.4 million euros.
The aim of the project is to ensure a fair and transparent distribution of agricultural subsidies.
Nov. 4
Tea producers, exporters’ association established in Azerbaijan
Tea producers and exporters’ association has been established in Azerbaijan, the country’s Economy Ministry said. The association was established on the initiative of entrepreneurs and with the support of the Economy Ministry.
“The establishment of the association will help coordinate activity of tea producers and exporters, promote cooperation among them, accelerate the development of the sphere and increase production and export of tea,” the ministry said.
Talyat Mammadov, head of the Astara Chay LLC, has been elected chairman of the board of the association.
Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan mull mutually beneficial co-op
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev held bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan Sapar Isakov and First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yagub Eyyubov, who took part in a meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of Government in Tashkent, said the Uzbek president’s press service in a message.
During the meeting with Azerbaijan’s First Deputy Prime Minister Yagub Eyyubov, the two sides discussed the expansion of mutually beneficial Uzbek-Azerbaijani partnership in trade, energy, transportation and transit, and other priority areas. They noted the importance of carefully preparing economic agenda during the upcoming bilateral summits.
During the meeting with Prime Minister of Kyrgyzstan Sapar Isakov, the parties noted the dynamic development of the Uzbek-Kyrgyz multifaceted ties. It was noted that the mutual high level visits in the past months and their fruitful results brought bilateral relations to the level of strategic partnership.