Putin meets with Ilham Aliyev in the Kremlin

On Monday afternoon, Russian and Azerbaijani Presidents Vladimir Putin and Ilham Aliyev held talks in the Kremlin. Welcoming Aliyev, Putin said that these days the 50th anniversary of the Baikal-Amur Mainline is being celebrated. "Everyone knows very well that your father played a very significant role, headed a government commission, and went to the construction site many times. In fact, he was one of the organizers of this grandiose project, important for the entire Soviet Union. We know this, we remember  and we are very grateful to him, we keep the memory of it", Putin noted.

"I am sure that all the efforts, labors, and years of work that your father invested in the implementation of this huge project still play a significant role today, not only for Russia, but also for the entire Commonwealth of Independent States," Putin continued.

Referring  bilateral relations, he said that mutual trade turnover is growing, which has reached more than $ 4 billion. Six billion are Russian investments in the economy of Azerbaijan.

"Of course, we will also talk about the situation from the point of view of ensuring security in the region. There are a lot of questions here, they are very sensitive. We are in the material on each of them," Putin said.

In response, Ilham Aliyev said that Azerbaijan greatly appreciates the attitude towards the memory of Heydar Aliyev, which is in the leadership and among the public of Russia.

"For more than two years now, we have been working within the framework of the Declaration on Allied Cooperation, which we signed here in the Kremlin in February 2022 and which is the main political document that determines the progressive development of our relations in the future," Aliyev said.

The international North-South transport project, as well as regional security issues, are on the agenda of the negotiations.

"We are also pleased with how they are being resolved. Russia is a fundamental country in terms of regional security in the Caucasus and in a wider geography. And a lot depends on the actions and interaction between our countries. We are aimed at strengthening confidence-building measures, cooperation, mutual understanding and settlement of all issues in the spirit of interaction and mutual interests," Aliyev said.