President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has today received credentials of head of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Kestutis Jankauskas.

Head of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Kestutis Jankauskas reviewed a guard of honor.

Kestutis Jankauskas presented his credentials to President Ilham Aliyev.

President Ilham Aliyev then spoke with the head of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan.

Kestutis Jankauskas said: "I will spare no efforts to further develop the EU-Azerbaijan relations which are based on mutual benefit, common values and mutual interests in all spheres. This covers not only the energy field, but also the areas as transport, diversification of the economy and the building of a modern state and society. We appreciate Azerbaijan's role as a stable and reliable partner in the region and its importance as a country, which built a tolerant, multicultural and secular society. Mr President, I am looking forward to cooperation with you based on mutual trust to strengthen our bilateral relations."

Expressing his gratitude for good words on Azerbaijan and bilateral cooperation prospects, the head of state said: "We are very pleased with the level of our partnership with the European Union, and the European Union is our key trade partner. Of course, our cooperation is not limited to trade and energy sectors, it covers a wide range of areas."

Describing his last visit to Brussels as a success, the head of state noted that the trip encouraged an active negotiation process on the new partnership document between Azerbaijan and the European Union, and these talks currently successfully continue.

President Ilham Aliyev underlined that the Azerbaijan-EU cooperation has a very broad agenda, saying that fruitful discussions are being held on the issues relating to political relations, democratic development of Azerbaijan, as well as the energy, transport, security, humanitarian, educational, cultural and multiculturalism issues. The head of state noted that Azerbaijan and the EU enjoy high-level mutual understanding for expanding bilateral cooperation. President Ilham Aliyev noted that his country attaches great importance to this cooperation and has already signed and adopted strategic partnership documents and declarations with more than a third of the EU member states. Describing this as a very good basis for cooperation, President Ilham Aliyev expressed his confidence that a new agreement between Azerbaijan and the EU will soon be signed.

The head of state expressed his hope that the European Union's stance on the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan will remain unchanged.

Head of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Kestutis Jankauskas thanked President Ilham Aliyev for his remarks. He emphasized that he has been dealing with security policy for many years, saying that he will use his knowledge and experience in this area in the settlement of a crucial issue as the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

Pointing out President Ilham Aliyev's visit to Brussels and the document on partner relations, Kestutis Jankauskas hailed the importance of the issue. He noted that active work is underway on the agreement in Brussels.