By Burc Eruygur
ISTANBUL (AA) – Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Wednesday discussed bilateral ties and the supply of energy to Europe during a meeting with his Latvian counterpart Egils Levits, who arrived in the capital Baku on an official visit.
“At the meeting, it was noted that Azerbaijan-Latvia relations have the nature of a strategic partnership. Latvia's support for the development of Azerbaijan's relations with the European Union and NATO was highly appreciated. It was also emphasized that the Embassy of Latvia in our country acts as a liaison between NATO and Azerbaijan,” read a statement by the Azerbaijani presidency.
It further said Aliyev and Levits recalled their meeting in Davos, Switzerland earlier this year, and noted the role of the discussions held at that meeting in the development of bilateral relations.
Both presidents also talked about Azerbaijani-EU relations, as they underscored the role of Baku in the energy security of the European bloc and the importance of the memorandum on Strategic Partnership signed between both sides in the field of energy in July 2022, according to the statement.
“President Ilham Aliyev informed about the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, the process of negotiations on the peace treaty,” the statement also noted.
For his part, Levits said territorial integrity and international law are the basic principles of his country's foreign policy, and emphasized that Latvia supports Azerbaijan's territorial integrity in this regard, the statement added.
Relations between the two former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
In the fall of 2020, in 44 days of clashes, Azerbaijan liberated several cities, villages and settlements from Armenian occupation. The Russian-brokered peace agreement is celebrated as a triumph in Azerbaijan.