President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, who is on a working visit to Azerbaijan, have held a one-on-one meeting.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev welcomed President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko.

The presidents posed together for photographs.

The heads of state delivered remarks at the meeting.

President Ilham Aliyev said:

- Dear Alexander Grigoryevich, I am glad to see you again. Yesterday we had the opportunity to communicate in an informal format and discuss a wide range of issues on the bilateral agenda, as well as regional matters. Today we will continue our dialogue. I am delighted that the relations between our countries are developing. Together we have brought dynamism to our relations and see progress in all directions. We see that the issues we have agreed on are being implemented. Our reciprocal visits are of regular nature. I have recalled my visits to Belarus and your visits to Azerbaijan. All this shows that there is a close political relationship, a high level of trust between our countries and we are attitude is result-oriented. That is why we are seeing good results in the framework of economic cooperation. Despite the pandemic last year, our turnover has increased, and so have exports from Azerbaijan to Belarus. Therefore, today we will discuss in more detail the issues related to industrial cooperation. According to our joint decision, the industrial enterprise in Gandja has been operating for a long time.

I would also like to discuss with you the issues related to the restoration of Karabakh. We are aware of the expertise of Belarusian companies in creating agro-industrial complexes in your country. Therefore, this issue, of course, has a special place in terms of the restoration of liberated territories.

It is gratifying that we will continue to support each other in the international organizations in which we participate. In other words, our relations are far from any problems. Our regular contacts allow us the opportunity to simply summarize the work done, outline further steps and move forward as two friends and two partners. Welcome again, I am glad to see you in Baku again.

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President Alexander Lukashenko said:

- Thank you, Ilham Heydar oglu. Against the background of all these pandemics and other events, our meeting may seem a bit like a burden. However, true friends do not delay actions that need to be taken on time. This is what we are doing and no pandemic can stop that.

You have rightly said that our relations in political and economic areas are very diverse in terms of specific directions, they are very appropriate and nothing can harm them. We do not hinder anyone and no-one can hinder us. Because if you want to do something, it is difficult to stop it.

Indeed, Azerbaijan has taken a huge step towards achieving its national dream. But this is only the first step. We talked about it a lot yesterday. I am very glad that you, as a true friend of the Belarusian people, know that there is still much work to be done, very hard work is ahead to restore life in the liberated territories, and very much peaceful work must be done. You should know that you have reliable friends in Belarus. You know our capabilities. Today we will discuss them again with ministers and experts. If we come to an agreement, as we have always done, we will always implement the agreements, as evidenced by the fact that the turnover has reached half a billion dollars now. In general, there were no instances before you became President. Therefore, this is a good result in terms of dynamics.

As for our political relations, it is difficult to say that we are missing something or that there is a certain negative factor. We do not have such factors. Our relationship is excellent and I am always proud of that. We have restored the most cordial relations in all directions since the Soviet era. I am especially grateful to you for your support in the supply of hydrocarbons to Belarus, especially in difficult times. This morning, I thought that perhaps we should consider deepening our relations in this sensitive area, because Belarus is at the center of economic and political events. There are no unresolved issues. Thank you, as I just said, for finding time to discuss these issues at a very busy time for Azerbaijan.

President Ilham Aliyev: Thank you.

The meeting then continued in an expanded format with the participation of delegations.