A dialogue between the EU and Azerbaijan

Baku / 04.11.18 / Turan: A security dialogue was held in Baku between Azerbaijan and the European Union. According to the information by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on November 3, within the framework of the dialogue, issues on the regional and international agenda were discussed.

The participants focused on the topics such as fight against terrorism, separatism, cooperation in the field of transnational crime, smuggling, cyber security was at the center of discussion. During the discussions, it was noted that at present negotiations on a partnership agreement create favorable conditions for all-round cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan. The parties agreed that the ongoing dialogue is regarded as a new moment in the relationship, and the dialogue will continue next year. The EU delegation is led by Jean-Christophe Bellaard, deputy political affairs secretary-general of the European Foreign Action Service.

Azerbaijan has been cooperating with the EU since 2009 under the Eastern Partnership program. This program includes Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Armenia. Of these countries, the association agreement was signed by Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine. In recent years, Azerbaijani officials have declared that they prefer separate cooperation with EU member states. In November 2017, the EU signed a partnership agreement with Armenia. Since the beginning of last year, negotiations began on signing the same agreement with Azerbaijan. -0-