Minister Korčok visiting Baku

During his official visit to the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, Ivan Korčok, held talks with President Ilham Aliyev, Prime Minister Ali Asadov, his ministerial partner Jeychun Bayramov and the Minister of Economy Mikail Jabbarov. The program also included the Slovak-Azerbaijani Business Forum and the signing of an intergovernmental agreement on economic cooperation.

“I appreciate that the intensity of the dialogue between Slovakia and Azerbaijan at a high political level brings concrete results in the field of economic cooperation,” said Minister I. Korčok.

The head of the Slovak diplomacy visited Azerbaijan for the second time in 2021. In addition to political issues, the business trip had primarily a trade and economic dimension.
“Part of my trip to Azerbaijan was a business mission composed of the representatives of Slovak companies and the SARIO representatives. Together with Azerbaijani partners, they had the opportunity to discuss new economic cooperation projects in a joint business forum. I am pleased that we are also strengthening this cooperation at intergovernmental level. By signing a bilateral agreement with the Minister of Economy, we are opening a new chapter in Slovak-Azerbaijani relations. One of the outputs of this agreement is the establishment of an intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation, which will also support new opportunities for our entrepreneurs, “said the head of Slovak diplomacy.

Negotiations on foreign policy issues also included Azerbaijan’s relations with the EU, for which the Caucasian country is an important partner in the field of energy security due to its rich deposits of natural gas and oil.

The head of Slovak diplomacy assured the partners about the continued political support of Slovakia in the interest of cooperation with the Eastern Partnership countries also in the preparations for the EU-Eastern Partnership summit, which will take place in December this year.
The talks in Baku also focused on current issues of international affairs, including the post-war situation in the region.

“The recent war in Karabakh, which killed thousands of young people and severely affected the civilian population, is the result of decades of disputes between the two nations. The only way to a long-term and sustainable solution is respect for international law, including the principle of territorial integrity, strict adherence to the ceasefire, political dialogue and readiness to compromise on both sides, “said Minister Korčok.

The head of the Slovak diplomacy also held talks with his ministerial partner Jeychun Bayramov. The issue of opening a direct diplomatic mission of Azerbaijan in Bratislava was also part of the discussion.

Source of text and photographs: Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic