Baku, October 26, AZERTAC
The Center for Analysis of International Relations and Multiculturalism hosted a meeting with a delegation led by Tom Berendsen, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The sides exchanged views on the current state of Azerbaijan-Netherlands relations, developments in the South Caucasus, as well as the regional peace agenda.
Farhad Mammadov, Deputy Chair of the Board of the Center and coordinator of the "Bridge of Peace" initiative, briefed the delegation on the outcomes of the four meetings held so far as part of the initiative, the approaches of Azerbaijani and Armenian societies toward the peace process, as well as foreign interference in the developments taking place in the South Caucasus.
Emphasizing Azerbaijan's commitment to peace, Mammadov noted that clarifying the fate of missing persons and addressing the landmine threat remain pressing issues. He said narratives damaging mutual trust pose an obstacle to securing sustainable peace.
Sultan Zahidov, Senior Advisor at the Center, stressed the importance of enhancing cooperation between Azerbaijani and Dutch think tanks. He mentioned that the Center seeks to intensify relations with European think tanks and expand its cooperation.
Zahidov stressed the importance of the Azerbaijan-EU Think Tank Forum scheduled to be held in Brussels on October 27, co-organized with the Egmont Royal Institute for International Relations. He also highlighted discussions organized by the Center in partnership with the University of St. Gallen (Switzerland) and the LINKS Europe Foundation on topical issues on the European and Azerbaijani agendas.
Dutch Minister Tom Berendsen underlined that advancing people-to-people contacts and confidence-building play a crucial role in strengthening the foundations of lasting peace.