On February 13, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, received the credentials of Birol Akgün, the incoming Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Türkiye to Azerbaijan.

Following the formal presentation of credentials, President Aliyev engaged in a discussion with Ambassador Akgün. The ambassador conveyed the warm greetings of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to which President Aliyev expressed his gratitude and asked him to extend his own greetings in return.

The Azerbaijani leader emphasized the unparalleled nature of Azerbaijan-Türkiye relations, stating that even the closest international alliances lack a comparable bond. He highlighted the deepening bilateral strategic alliance, which has expanded to trilateral platforms such as the Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan-Türkiye and Azerbaijan-Pakistan-Türkiye cooperation mechanisms.

Reaffirming that "the Turkic world is our family," President Aliyev recalled making this statement during his inauguration ceremony at the Milli Majlis.

The discussion also touched upon the successful cooperation between Azerbaijan and Türkiye within international organizations. In particular, they emphasized Azerbaijan’s membership in the D-8 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Türkiye’s steadfast support in facilitating this process.

Both leaders reiterated that Azerbaijan and Türkiye have always stood shoulder to shoulder. Regarding the Syrian issue, President Aliyev noted that Azerbaijan had supported Türkiye from the very beginning and expressed readiness to contribute - through coordination with Türkiye - to ensuring stability, security, and addressing humanitarian challenges in Syria.

Once again, they underscored that the Azerbaijan-Türkiye brotherhood and friendship serve as a foundation for stability, security, peace, and prosperity not only in the South Caucasus but also beyond.

Ambassador Akgün reaffirmed that Azerbaijan-Türkiye relations are built on the guiding principles of National Leader Heydar Aliyev’s "One nation, two states" and Mustafa Kemal Atatürk’s "Azerbaijan’s joy is our joy, its sorrow is our sorrow." He pledged to spare no effort in further strengthening these ties.

The ambassador also praised Azerbaijan’s historic victory in Karabakh, recalling the deep solidarity expressed by the entire Turkish nation during that period. He once again extended his heartfelt congratulations to President Aliyev and the Azerbaijani people on this significant achievement.