President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov.

Noting rich history of Azerbaijani-Turkmen relations, the head of state hailed the successful development of bilateral relationship in all areas.

President Ilham Aliyev pointed out active cooperation between the two countries in bilateral and multilateral formats, saying that through joint efforts the bilateral relations have reached a new level in recent years.

The head of state underlined active collaboration between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan in political sphere, praising the successful development of relations in a number of other areas, including transport, energy, and culture.

President Ilham Aliyev said: “All this is based on our centuries-long brotherly relations and we are optimistic about the future of our relationship.”

The President expressed his confidence that relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan will continue successfully developing, and noted that Rashid Meredov’s visit will contribute to the strengthening of brotherly ties between the two countries.

Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov thanked for warm words, and extended President Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov’s greetings and best regards to President Ilham Aliyev.

Rashid Meredov noted that the Turkmen head of state instructed him to congratulate President Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of the state Independence Day of Azerbaijan, and handed over Gurbangulu Berdimuhammedov’s congratulatory message to President Ilham Aliyev.

President Ilham Aliyev thanked for attention and congratulations and asked Rashid Meredov to extend his greetings and best wishes to the Turkmen President.

President Ilham Aliyev described the friendly ties of the Turkmen and Azerbaijani heads of state as an important factor in developing bilateral relations between the two countries.

The sides also exchanged views on prospects for cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.