Geneva, March 26, AZERTAC

Speaker of Azerbaijan’s Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova has met with Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) Salim bin Mohammed AlMalik on the sidelines of the 148th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Geneva, the Swiss Confederation.

The sides hailed the high level development of cooperation, as well as the constant dialogue between Azerbaijan and ICESCO.

Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova recalled her meeting with the ICESCO Secretary General in the course of her official visit to Morocco in December last year. She said that Azerbaijan attaches a great importance to cooperation with the Organisation, as well as with the Islamic countries. "Azerbaijan is an active member of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) family. Our country collaborates with the OIC Member States, bilaterally as well as in international organisations, and always endeavours to solidify the solidarity of our countries," Sahiba Gafarova noted.

The Speaker also mentioned that Azerbaijan highly appreciates the cooperation with ICESCO and attaches a special significance to it.

The parties underscored the importance of the conference of the Non-Aligned Movement Parliamentary Network and of the discussions held. They noted that granting ICESCO the NAMPN observer status would contribute to the progress of the two parties’ co-operation.

Salim bin Mohammed AlMalik expressed the interest of ICESCO in further expanding the collaboration with Azerbaijan. He fondly remembered the conversations he had had with the leadership of Azerbaijan during his visits to Azerbaijan in the past years, adding that the already-signed Plan of Activities would further deepen the cooperation between ICESCO and Azerbaijan.

The Director General lauded the activities of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in the Islamic World’s educational, academic and cultural domains.

Moreover, Salim bin Mohammed AlMalik congratulated Azerbaijan on hosting the upcoming 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) and on Shusha’s declaration as the Cultural Capital of the Islamic World in 2024.

During the meeting, the sides also exchanged views on other issues of mutual interest between Azerbaijan and ICESCO.