President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received a delegation led by EU Commissioner for the European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn.

The successful development of relations between Azerbaijan and EU in various fields was hailed at the meeting, and the sides also discussed prospects of bilateral ties.

EU Commissioner for the European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn pointed to the 5th Azerbaijan-EU Business Forum, which they attended today, describing the fact that it brought together a large number of participants as a sign of importance attached to the forum. He noted that the forum featured very fruitful discussions on diversification of the economy.

The head of state said that essential work has been done towards diversifying Azerbaijan’s economy, adding that it has yielded very good results.

President Ilham Aliyev praised the achievements in a variety of areas, including in industry, agriculture, tourism and others, saying that all this created a good basis for sustainable economic development of Azerbaijan.

EU Commissioner Johannes Hahn described Azerbaijan as one of the key partners of the European Union, saying the organization pays particular attention to cooperation with the country in all areas.

The EU Commissioner also noted that the conclusion of negotiations between Azerbaijan and the EU on a new agreement will give an impetus to elevating bilateral cooperation to a qualitatively new level. He described Azerbaijan as the EU`s key strategic partner in the field of energy, and expressed confidence that the Southern Gas Corridor project will soon be completed.

Commissioner Johannes Hahn also called Azerbaijan the main transport corridor linking Europe with a broad Eurasian area, saying he supports the signing and implementation of agreements and projects in this regard.

The importance of developing educational cooperation between Azerbaijan and the EU was also emphasized at the meeting.

The sides discussed the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, and international and regional security issues.