President Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation led by the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran, Ali Larijani.

President Ilham Aliyev expressed his confidence that the visit to Azerbaijan by the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran, Ali Larijani, would be successful. He pointed to the importance of the visit from the standpoint of the development of Azerbaijani-Iranian relations. Stressing that the friendly and brotherly ties between our peoples were strengthening, President Ilham Aliyev said that these ties had given an impetus to the development of relations between the two countries.

Pointing to the active cooperation between Azerbaijan and Iran in all the spheres, the head of state emphasized that political relations had been stepped up. The President of Azerbaijan said good progress has been made in the economic sphere, pointing to specific projects being implemented in the transport and energy sectors. He stressed the need for further cooperation in this direction.

Pointing to a very good level of relations in the cultural and humanitarian spheres, President Ilham Aliyev stressed the importance of expanding cooperation in this field. The President said Azerbaijani-Iranian relations had a great importance for the strengthening of security measures not only in the two countries, but also in the region as a whole. Touching upon inter-parliamentary ties, President Ilham Aliyev said there was a good level of cooperation in this field and stressed the importance of mutual visits for a further enhancement of these relations.

Ali Larijani passed greetings from President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on to the President of Azerbaijan. Recalling his last visit to Baku 14 years ago, the distinguished guest said he was witnessing vast development of our country. He described this as the result of prudent policies being pursued by President Ilham Aliyev and congratulated the head of state on the successes achieved.

Saying that Iranian-Azerbaijani relations have deep historical roots, Ali Larijani pointed to the special role of the nationwide leader of the Azerbaijani people, Heydar Aliyev, in the opening of a new page in bilateral relations. The Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran stressed that there were ample opportunities for the development of relations between Iran and Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev expressed his gratitude for the greetings from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and asked Mr. Larijani to convey his greetings to the President of Iran.