Iran, Azerbaijan seek strengthening ties despite differences

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in a meeting with Azerbaijan's Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev called for widening mutual cooperation between the two neighbors.

News ID: 5836

Date: 21 January 2025 - 22:16

TABNAK, Jan 21: "The Islamic Republic of Iran has the development of relations and interactions with neighboring and Muslim countries as a principled policy on its agenda, and in this regard, relations with Azerbaijan are of particular importance to us, and we seek to expand relations in all fields between the two countries," Pezeshkian said during the meeting in Tehran on Tuesday.

He pointed to the agreements reached and joint projects currently underway between the two countries in trade, energy, and transportation sectors, and said, "Continuing and strengthening the level of this cooperation will turn the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan into strategic partners for each other."

Mustafayev, for his part, conveyed warm greetings from President of Azerbaijan Aliyev to his Iranian counterpart, and said, "Over the past decades, the Republic of Azerbaijan has spared no effort to expand relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Moreover, the important changes that we have witnessed during this short period of your presidency promise a bright future in the relations between the two countries and the situation in our region."

"We also appreciate the influential role of the Islamic Republic of Iran in establishing peace and stability in the region and believe that solving the problems of our region will be possible only by the countries of this region. The presence of foreign countries will not help us in this regard," he added.

Mustafayev provided Pezeshkian with a detailed report on the latest state of relations between the two countries, especially in the trade and economic sectors, as well as ongoing joint projects in the rail and road transportation and energy exchange sectors.

"The high-ranking Azerbaijani economic delegation during its visit to Tehran is seeking to draw a roadmap for further expanding economic and trade relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran, and we want to establish strategic cooperation between the two countries," he added.

Mustafayev further conveyed the invitation of the President of Azerbaijan to Pezeshkian to visit his country.