Speech by Ilham Aliyev at the limited meeting of CIS Heads of State Council in Bishkek

- Dear Sadyr Nurgojoyevich, distinguished heads of state. First of all, I would like to thank the President of Kyrgyzstan, Sadyr Nurgojoyevich Zhaparov, for the hospitality and the excellent organization of the event.

I am pleased that the friendly and brotherly relations between Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan are developing successfully. The agreements reached during reciprocal visits of the heads of state are being implemented. Azerbaijan has started implementing investment projects in Kyrgyzstan. The Azerbaijan-Kyrgyzstan Investment Fund has been established to deepen our cooperation. Taking this opportunity, I congratulate the leadership of Kyrgyzstan on the successes achieved in the way of the country's socio-economic development.

I would like to wish dear Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin success in the Russian Federation's chairmanship of the CIS next year.

Awarding the CIS Badge of Honor to the President of Uzbekistan, respected Shavkat Mirziyoyev, is a significant event of this meeting. I congratulate Shavkat Mironovich on this well-deserved award. Another important event related to brotherly Uzbekistan is the decision to declare the city of Samarkand the "Cultural Capital of the Commonwealth" in 2024.

The humanitarian sphere is one of the main spheres in our Commonwealth. Azerbaijan is making a significant contribution to developing our relations in this sphere. I would like to express my gratitude to my colleagues for supporting Azerbaijan's candidacy to host the third CIS Games in 2025.

In addition to strengthening our cooperation in sports, I am sure that the third CIS Games will also be a demonstration of our successful cooperation within the Commonwealth.

I want to take this opportunity to congratulate the President of Belarus, Mr. Aleksandr Grigoryevich Lukashenko, on the successful hosting of the second CIS Games.

Dear colleagues, the strengthening of our economic ties is producing positive results. Last year, the trade volume between Azerbaijan and the CIS countries grew by almost 30 percent. This year's growth will constitute more than 20 percent.

Azerbaijan is a reliable partner for many CIS countries in transit and transportation. Many CIS countries actively use Azerbaijan's transit opportunities in the East-West and North-South transport corridors. The ongoing and future projects to expand the capacity of these two transport corridors will strengthen our countries' transport security and increase our trade.

I would like to express my gratitude to the President of Kyrgyzstan again for the excellent organization of the event. I am confident that the results of the Summit will serve to strengthen our cooperation further.

Thank you for your attention.