Baku, February 15, AZERTAC

Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ali Asadov has participated in a plenary session of the World Government Summit in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

Addressing the meeting, the Prime Minister said that the Republic of Azerbaijan was conducting an independent and active foreign policy and was recognized as a reliable partner worldwide.

It was brought to attention of the meeting participants that during the 44-day Patriotic War, Azerbaijan had liberated its ancient lands that had been under occupation for 30 years. The state of Azerbaijan, which has always treated international law, its norms and principles with great respect and responsibility, is working hard to establish peace, stability, cooperation and sustainable development in the region today.

It was emphasized that Azerbaijan always stood in solidarity with countries in need and provided assistance to them. “Especially in the recent past, our support to more than 80 countries related to COVID represented our contribution to the strengthening of solidarity in the international arena,” the Prime Minister said.

Ali Asadov once again expressed Azerbaijan's solidarity with Türkiye following the devastating earthquake that occurred in the southern of the country.

PM Asadov also provided information about Azerbaijan's successful chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement, evaluated the one-year extension of this chairmanship with the unanimous consent of member states as a sign of appreciation of the role played by the country in the international arena.

The meeting participants were also informed about the work being done in the direction of diversifying the economy in Azerbaijan, further improving the business and investment environment, increasing the competitiveness of the national economy, ensuring the social protection of the population, improving the living conditions of the people, and significantly reducing the level of poverty.

Last year, the Gross Domestic Product increased by 4.6 percent compared to the previous year, foreign trade has been increasing by the year and foreign debt has substantially decreased.

It was brought to the attention of the audience that Azerbaijan, which has invested heavily in the transport infrastructure over the past years, had initiated and was the main participant in a number of regional and international transportation projects. It was emphasized that the Baku International Sea Trade Port, located at the intersection of transport corridors, was playing a crucially important role in expanding the country's transit opportunities.

Talking about the successes Azerbaijan had achieved in the fields of space industry and modern technologies, the Prime Minister said that the 74th International Astronautical Congress would be held in Baku in October 2023, and invited all organizations and institutions operating in this field to join the event.

It was also indicated that Azerbaijan had acted as the initiator and participant of a number of important energy projects.

The Prime Minister emphasized that Azerbaijan was also strengthening its position as an exporter of electricity and the country had a huge green energy potential.

“Today, together with foreign investors, we have started projects related to the production of solar and wind energy. One of them, a 230 MW Garadagh Solar Power Plant project, is being implemented jointly with “Masdar”, a company from the United Arab Emirates. “Masdar” is one of the main and reliable partners for us in this field,” the Prime Minister noted.

The importance of the Agreement on a strategic partnership in the field of green energy development and transmission signed between Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Hungary in Bucharest last December was also emphasized.

Addressing the challenges of the post-pandemic, post-conflict and poly-crisis period, Ali Asadov pointed out that a document called “Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities for Socioeconomic Development” had been approved by the President of Azerbaijan in order to ensure the socioeconomic development of the country in the next decade.

It was stated that the liberation of Azerbaijani territories that had remained under occupation for 30 years, the reintegration of these territories into the country's overall economy, the benefits to be obtained from the opportunities of new international and regional transport and logistical corridors, especially the Zangezur corridor, which is of great importance to the region, would give a great impetus to the development of Azerbaijan.