Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

I cordially congratulate you and feel privileged to convey my best wishes to your friendly people on the occasion of the 30th anniversary since establishing the diplomatic relations – the landmark date between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Azerbaijan attaches a particular importance to the friendship and cooperation with the United Kingdom. It is gratifying that our ties in political, economic, humanitarian and other fields based on mutual trust and support between our countries have dynamically developed in last thirty years.

The achievements we attained in the economic sphere in this period are encouraging. The United Kingdom until today has put large scale investments into the economy of Azerbaijan. Almost 600 businesses representing your country which is one of the biggest trade partners of Azerbaijan are involved and successfully operate in several important projects in Azerbaijan.

I wish to note in particular our years’ long relations of strategic partnership well tested in the energy area. Today’s still successful continuation of our energy collaboration founded on the basis of the Contract of the Century in 1994 mirrors our beneficial working relationship and reciprocal confidence. It is pleasant to see our strategic cooperation with BP as our reliable partner in oil and gas production. I highly value the support given by the United Kingdom to the Southern Gas Corridor and convey my congratulations on the occasion of successful completion of the project’s construction.

It is remarkable that today our interaction in the field of energy has evolved by being elevated into a new level. The joint activities of Azerbaijan with your country in the green energy transition area are very important in diversifying our ties in non-oil sector. At the same time, we welcome the contribution given by the UK companies for the mine clearance in the territories of Azerbaijan liberated from the occupation, and applaud their close participation in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of these territories.

I believe that the cooperation between Azerbaijan and the United Kingdom will continue to develop and expand by our joint efforts.

I wish you strong health, happiness, success in your activities, and everlasting prosperity to the friendly people of the United Kingdom.

Sincerely,

Ilham Aliyev

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Baku, 21 February 2022