Azeri FM says Armenian occupation hinders ECO development
Baku, December 22 (AZERTAC). Azerbaijan`s Minister of Foreign Affairs Elmar Mammadyarov has said the occupation by Armenia of his country`s territories hinders the development of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO).
Mammadyarov spoke at the 19th meeting of the ECO Council of Ministers in Istanbul, Turkey.
He said social and humanitarian problems faced by the member states while accepting reform rules must be considered by the organization correspondingly.
“Real regional cooperation cannot be discussed as long as the region is experiencing instability. It is the biggest problem faced by our region and organization and it needs more decisive attempts. The occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani lands by neighboring Armenia and existence of one million refugees and IDPs in the country creates obstacles for development, stability and progress of the ECO in the region.”
The Minister said: “For this purpose, the organization and member states must increase decisive and continuous support to ensure the restoration of Azerbaijan`s territorial integrity and solution of the conflict.”
The Azeri FM also said his country attached special importance to the cooperation within the organization.
“We are sure that the decisions passed during today`s meeting will be important steps for increasing the efficiency of the organization and its ability to reply to the challenges of the region. Taking into account that transportation is the major building element of cooperation within the organization and the initial condition for the development of the regional trade, we consider that it is important to increase the efforts for completing Baku-Tbilisi-Kars and Gazvin-Rasht-Astara main regional railway projects that will be useful for the member states.”
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