Azerbaijani ambassador to France highlights new realities of South Caucasus PHOTO

Azerbaijani Ambassador to France Leyla Abdullayeva has met with students of the Paris Institute of Political Studies – Sciences Po.

At the meeting, the Ambassador informed the students in detail about Azerbaijan's rich history, geography, cultural heritage, foreign policy and its position in the region, AZERTAC reports.

The diplomat noted that Azerbaijan, located in a very important geopolitical space between Europe and Asia, has constantly fought for its independence and that the country is the first democratic and secular republic in the Muslim East, which for the first time in the East granted women the right to vote. Today gender equality in the country is ensured in all spheres. Leyla Abdullayeva emphasized that Azerbaijan, which regained its independence in the 90s of the last century, faced Armenia's military aggression from the very first day.

Stating that during the thirty years of Armenian occupation Azerbaijan tried to solve the conflict through negotiations, the Ambassador noted that the inaction of the OSCE Minsk Group, which was entrusted with the settlement of the conflict, as well as Armenia's military provocations forced Azerbaijan to liberate its lands militarily.

In 2020, thanks to our valiant Army under the leadership of Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev, the occupied territories were liberated, thus Azerbaijan created new realities in the region. Azerbaijan intends to contribute to the establishment of stability and peace in the region, the Ambassador said.

She also highlighted the revival of the country's economy by the savior of the newly independent Azerbaijan, national leader Heydar Aliyev, signing of the "Contract of the Century", attraction of the world's largest companies to the country.

She drew the students’ attention to giant energy projects implemented by Azerbaijan, which make a great contribution to the energy security of the European Union. At the same time, the students were informed about the initiated by President Ilham Aliyev green energy strategy, diversification of energy sources, and importance of renewable energy sources. It was emphasized that Azerbaijan, located at the crossroads of East-West and North-South routes, connects continents and has become a transport and logistics hub of the region. It was noted that the Zangazur corridor, which is of interest to many countries in the current period of global political, economic and environmental difficulties, will make an important contribution to the economic development of the region as well as three continents - Europe, Asia and Africa.

Ambassador Abdullayeva talked of Azerbaijan's non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council and chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement. She informed that this year Azerbaijan will host the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 29) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The event then featured a Q&A session.