“We hope the Eastern Partnership program will enhance this cooperation,” head of Azerbaijani delegation to EURONEST Ziyafat Asgarov said at the first meeting.

Asgarov underlined the necessity of establishing dialogue with the European Union.
“I hope EURONEST will justify hopes in this field and pave the way for integration to the European family. This year Azerbaijan is marking the 20th anniversary of its independence. Much has been achieved within these 20 years. Azerbaijan sees its future in Europe. Partnership with the European Union has turned into mutual cooperation. We highly appreciate Europe’s assistance concerning human rights and other spheres. As an active participant of the Eastern Partnership program Azerbaijan started talks with the European Union concerning the association agreement last summer and we hope these talks will be successful. We also hope that we will start talks on the facilitation of the visa travel by the end of the year,” he said.

Ziyafat Asgarov underlined the importance of paying attention to the protracted conflicts within the framework of the newly-established Parliamentary Assembly.
“Azerbaijan considers that EURONEST will pay attention to the solution of the conflicts basing on the countries’ territorial integrity. We consider that this should be one of the major interests of the European Union,” he said.
Ziyafat Asgarov noted that the European Parliament adopted a resolution last spring, the document called on Armenia to release the occupied Azerbaijani territories.