Aliyev: The activity of the joint monitoring center of Russia and Türkiye has ended

According to the report of the international group of Tasnim news agency, citing the media of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said in a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Schultz on the evening of April 26, regarding the relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan and Germany: The relations between Germany and Azerbaijan have recently undergone a period of rapid development. has experienced The development of relations between Germany and Azerbaijan is very important both for our countries and for the development and stability of the South Caucasus as a whole. We are currently actively trying to export green energy to Europe, and I believe that Azerbaijan, which is a supplier of natural gas, will also be a supplier of green energy to Europe. Regarding natural gas, the European Union Energy Commission considers Azerbaijan as a gas supplier to the European Union.

Aliyev noted: Our gas supply to Europe is based on strategic partnership. In 2022, the European Union and Azerbaijan adopted the relevant memorandum. We are determined to increase the volume of gas we will export to Europe to 20 billion cubic meters by 2027. Demand for natural gas from new sources in Europe is increasing. If in 2021, we exported 8 billion cubic meters of gas to EU countries, this year this figure has reached 12 billion. We make more investments and allocate more funds to support European countries in this field. Therefore, Azerbaijan, rich in traditional and renewable energies, will be an important partner for Europe for years to come.

Regarding the peace process with Armenia, the President of Azerbaijan said: Regarding regional security, we greatly appreciate the ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Recently, the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia met in Germany at the invitation of the German Chancellor. Mrs. Berbock, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany, also showed her support. The next meeting will be held in Kazakhstan, and therefore we are taking the next steps to sign the peace agreement. Azerbaijan liberated a large part of its territory from occupation in 2020 and fully restored its sovereignty in September last year. Today, the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan has been completely restored. Of course, this is a historical achievement and it shows that the people and government of Azerbaijan were never going to deal with the occupation. Based on the standards and principles of international law, based on Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, we guaranteed our territorial integrity through military and political means.

Aliyev added: Today, as a result of the current process between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the process of delimiting the boundaries and even determining the borders has started. 4 Azerbaijani villages occupied in 1990 and 1992 will be returned to us. I must also inform you that the Russian-Turkish joint monitoring center based in Azerbaijan stopped its activity this morning and is no longer needed. It means that there are very good opportunities to reach peace. We are ready to cooperate with countries that want to help us in this work. We hope that positive steps will be taken in this direction soon. We especially appreciate Germany's support in this regard.

In response to a German journalist's question about the arrest of Azerbaijani journalist Imran Aliyev, he stated that the freedom of the media is guaranteed in this country, there is no censorship, there is no free internet, and hundreds of media organizations are operating, and he said: criticizing Azerbaijan to prevent It is unfair from the development of the media. If the internet is free, what kind of restrictions can we talk about?! In the case of individual cases, of course, law enforcement agencies investigate all matters. Not long ago, representatives of some media organizations that were illegally financed from abroad were arrested by investigative bodies. This was done in full accordance with the law of Azerbaijan. Every country must defend its laws and if a media representative who received illegal funds from abroad is under investigation, it should not mean that the media is not free. Just everyone should act within the law.

Aliyev added: “Like any other country, we must protect our media environment from outside negative influence and everyone must obey the law.” As we say, Azerbaijan has a free society. People, including representatives of the media, live, write and create completely freely and freely.

German Chancellor Olaf Schultz also said that they discussed the issue of human rights in detail in the framework of their talks with Ilham Aliyev.

He said: Germany helps human rights. Of course, every country should have a free press and human rights should not be violated, this is a general situation. Of course, it is not a secret that different countries have the potential to improve the situation.

In response to the question of Fatima Karimova, one of the founders of Mikroskopmedia, about the fact that billions of manats were invested in the reconstruction of Nagorno-Karabakh after the war, but many details of the projects were not clear to the public and the media, Aliyev replied: Actually, your question is surprising. has it. The reconstruction work in Karabagh and Eastern Zangzor is carried out in the most transparent way. People, including media representatives, are informed about the allocated credits. It is no secret that the latest information shows that the scope of work is large-scale. After the end of the war, until the end of this year, 12 billion manats and about 7 billion dollars have been and will be invested in Karabagh and East Zangzor. All works are visible, tender procedures have been fully observed.

He emphasized: “Honestly, I don't know where you got this information from?” You're probably getting it from an unknown source, but media tours of the liberated areas are being organized. Especially foreign media representatives are also familiar with this situation. If you had a chance, you would have seen how Armenia destroyed our lands and how happy the people who returned to the lands are today. Only 3.5 years have passed since the war, 6 thousand ex-displaced people have returned to their ancestral homes and this process continues. By the end of this year, 20 thousand displaced persons will return. Every returnee returns with a feeling of gratitude to the army and the leadership of Azerbaijan. I know that the absolute majority of the media in Azerbaijan love, support and welcome our activities.

It should be noted that Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan, visited Germany and participated in the high-level part of the “15th St. Petersburg Climate Dialogue” held in Berlin.

After that, he had a bilateral meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Schultz.

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