The Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov has arrived in Baku for talks with the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov.
After arriving in the Azerbaijani capital, he was received by President Aliyev. Azerbaijani news outlet APA reports that President Aliyev and Foreign Minister Lavrov soon after began their meeting.
In a statement posted on the website of the Russian Foreign Ministry, the meeting is being scheduled to coincide with the first anniversary of signing of the Declaration on Allied Cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Azerbaijan on 22 February 2022.
The press release said that they will "comprehensively discuss the state and prospects of bilateral cooperation based on the mutual mood for the progressive development of allied relations, and exchange views on the most pressing aspects of the regional and international agenda, including issues of Azerbaijani-Armenian normalisation".
The Russian MFA's statement also stressed their commitment to help "lay the foundations of mutually beneficial cooperation" between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and to "continue to support cooperation through civil society, parliamentarians and expert circles aimed at normalising Azerbaijani-Armenian relations".
The statement added that Moscow sees "the upcoming visit as an important stage of joint work with Azerbaijani partners to build a trusting dialogue and further enhancement of the whole range of allied ties".
source: commonspace.eu with Russian MFA, and agencies
photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia