Meeting with Secretary-General of the League of Arab States

On June 17, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, former Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit.

Ahmed Abul Gheit expressed satisfaction with participating in the Global Baku Forum and noted that the Forum was dedicated to a topical issue, and interesting discussions were held during the event. The guest touched upon cooperation between Azerbaijan and the League of Arab States.

President Ilham Aliyev noted that Azerbaijan has historically had close ties with Arab countries and that the nations are interconnected based on shared religious values ​​and history. The President recalled his visit to the League of Arab States Headquarters in 2007 and his meetings there.

During the conversation, the sides exchanged views on the development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and the League of Arab States.

Meeting with UN Under-Secretary-General

On June 17, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received the UN Under-Secretary-General and Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva Tatiana Valovaya.

President Ilham Aliyev stressed Azerbaijan's close cooperation with the United Nations and its specialized agencies and spoke about the country's achievements in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Aliyev noted that the National Coordinating Council for Sustainable Development was functioning in Azerbaijan, and the country's key development indicators were steadily increasing. President also flagged that the restoration and reconstruction of our liberated territories is one of the priorities on the country's agenda and that Azerbaijan is facing a significant landmine problem. He said that another similar incident took place today.

Tatiana Valova expressed satisfaction with her visit to Azerbaijan and participation in the IX Global Baku Forum on "Threats to the Global Order" organized by the Nizami Ganjavi International Center and the establishment of cooperation between the Nizami Ganjavi International Center and the UN Office in Geneva. The guest stressed the importance of paying particular attention to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals at the state level in Azerbaijan. 

During the conversation, the sides exchanged views on cooperation between Azerbaijan and the UN Office in Geneva and specialized organizations.

Meeting with Director-General of the World Health Organization

On June 16, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev received Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization.

The head of state thanked the Director-General of the World Health Organization for visiting Azerbaijan and participating in the Global Baku Forum. The President of Azerbaijan noted that the recommendations the World Health Organization provided to Azerbaijan in the fight against COVID-19 and its cooperation with the country were highly appreciated.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus expressed his satisfaction with the visit to Azerbaijan and conveyed congratulations on the successful fight against COVID-19, the activities the country had carried out in this area at the national, regional, and international levels, and also expressed his gratitude for the voluntary financial contribution and support Azerbaijan provided to the World Health Organization during the pandemic. The Director-General pointed to the close cooperation between the World Health Organization and the Nizami Ganjavi International Center and the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding.

The head of state noted that the situation regarding COVID-19 in Azerbaijan was very positive, that the number of infections had decreased to the lowest level, that the situation was entirely under control, and that most restrictions had been lifted, and life had returned to normality. The President of Azerbaijan noted with satisfaction that the citizens treated the state policy in the fight against COVID-19 with great confidence and that the population of Azerbaijan had followed the rules of the pandemic. The head of state stressed the importance of cooperation between the World Health Organization and Azerbaijan on projects to reconstruct the healthcare infrastructure in liberated territories.

Meeting with President of Venezuela

On June 17, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met in the format of a video conference with President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro, who was on a working visit to Azerbaijan, the press office of the Azerbaijani government reported. The reason for holding the meeting in a video conference format is that the members of the Venezuelan delegation tested positive for COVID-19.

Nicolas Maduro expressed his satisfaction with the fact that he was visiting Azerbaijan for the third time and added that Venezuela attached great importance to relations with Azerbaijan. The President of Venezuela noted the need for further development of bilateral ties and positively assessed the work carried out at the multilateral level, including within the Non-Aligned Movement. 

During the conversation, the sides also highlighted the successful joint activities of the two countries within the framework of international organizations, including the Non-Aligned Movement. The parties also emphasized Venezuela's support in extending Azerbaijan's chairmanship in the Non-Aligned Movement for another year. The Presidents noted Azerbaijan's adherence to the Bandung principles, which are fundamental principles of the Non-Aligned Movement.

President Ilham Aliyev said that Venezuela had always supported the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict within the framework of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. Aliyev added that the two countries had always supported and would continue to support each other's sovereignty and independence.

During the conversation, the sides emphasized the need to expand cooperation in the economic sphere and step up interaction between business circles. The presidents noted that discussing such issues as joint investment projects and creating joint ventures was very important in this context.

The meeting also discussed the successful activities of the two countries within the OPEC+ format.

Meeting with President of Albania

On June 16, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met with President of the Republic of Albania Ilir Meta.

The Albanian President thanked the President of Azerbaijan for completing the TAP project. President Ilir Meta wished Azerbaijan success in large-scale construction work in the liberated territories. Noting that Albania and Azerbaijan's peoples are brotherly, Ilir Meta hailed that next year will mark the 30th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev thanked President of Albania Ilir Meta for participating in the 9th Global Baku Forum. The head of state praised Albania's support for Azerbaijan's territorial integrity in the second Karabakh war, as always, and stressed that this shows once again that Albania is a friendly and brotherly country to Azerbaijan.

Noting that the destruction in the liberated territories is extensive, President Ilham Aliyev said that foreign journalists, politicians, and other officials witnessed it by visiting those territories. Underling that Azerbaijan is facing the problem of landmines, the head of state stressed that more than 220 people have been killed or injured due to landmines.