President Aliyev’s visit to Italy marks new milestones in strategic alliance Article by Eurasia Review

Eurasia Review has published an article by well-known political observer Peter Tase on the recent visit of Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev to Italy at the invitation of his Italian counterpart Sergio Mattarella. Caliber.Az reprints the piece.

On September 4th, The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, begun his working visit to Italy, at the invitation of the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella.  Azerbaijan and Italy have forged a strategic partnership over the last decade and economic, trade and political cooperation has reached the highest levels. President Ilham Aliyev was welcomed by the Italian President Sergio Mattarella, both leaders discussed the ongoing regional events and the energy future of Europe. Italy and Azerbaijan have shaped a strategic alliance that will certainly endure the test of time. 

On September 5, 2024, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev and Giorgia Meloni, President of the Council of Ministers of the Italian Republic attended a ceremony of the exchange of documents signed between Azerbaijan and Italy, in Rome.  

The “Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and Eni S.p.A company of the Italian Republic on biofuel and biomaterials” (a trilateral document) was exchanged by Jeyhun Bayramov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, and Claudio Descalzi, CEO of the Italian company Eni S.p.A. 

The “Memorandum of Understanding between the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Eni S.p.A company of the Italian Republic on cooperation in oil and gas production and midstream projects for energy supply security” was exchanged by Rovshan Najaf, President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan, and Claudio Descalzi, CEO of the Italian company Eni S.p.A. 

The “Memorandum of Understanding between the State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Eni S.p.A company of the Italian Republic on energy transition and greenhouse gas reduction” was exchanged by Rovshan Najaf, President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan, and Claudio Descalzi, CEO of the Italian company Eni S.p.A.

For the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev: “Italy and Azerbaijan have worked as strategic partners for many years, and the corresponding declaration was adopted almost ten years ago. Our cooperation covers many areas, and we have regular political contacts. This is my third visit to Italy since 2020, and President Mattarella paid a visit to Azerbaijan in 2018. High-level contacts demonstrate that we are very close partners.” 

On September 5th, as part of the Azerbaijani President’s working visit to Italy, Rome hosted the Italy-Azerbaijan roundtable. The event was co-organized by the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO), the Confederation of the Italian Industry (Confindustria), and Italy’s Ministry for Enterprises and Made in Italy. The roundtable brought together officials and over 40 entrepreneurs from sectors such as energy, chemicals, the automotive industry, pharmaceuticals, construction, and metallurgy.

According to the Azerbaijan State News Agency: “Mikayil Jabbarov, Azerbaijan’s Economy Minister, characterized Azerbaijan-Italy relations as strategic, describing Italy as Azerbaijan’s largest trade partner.” Minister Jabbarov emphasized the importance of “strengthening cooperation with Italy, particularly noting the successful involvement of numerous Italian companies in various sectors of Azerbaijan’s economy, including their activity in the liberated Azerbaijani territories.” The minister stressed that the discussions and agreements reached at the roundtable would create new opportunities and further enhance relations between the two countries. 

Adolfo Urso, Minister for Enterprises and Made in Italy, and Emanuele Orsini, President of the Confederation of the Italian Industry (Confindustria), emphasized the strategic energy partnership between Azerbaijan and Italy, highlighting the potential for expanding bilateral cooperation in the non-oil sector.  

Other speakers included Yusif Abdullayev, Executive Director of AZPROMO, Orkhan Mammadov, Chairman of the Board of Azerbaijan’s Small and Medium Business Development Agency (KOBIA), Ulvi Mansurov, Executive Director of “Azerbaijan Investment Company” OJSC, and Elkin Nurmammadov, Vice Rector of Azerbaijan’s ADA University. They provided insights into Azerbaijan’s export and investment potential.  

The discussions also focused on boosting cooperation in sectors such as industry, renewables, infrastructure, transport, textiles, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

The event concluded with the signing of several Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) between AZPROMO and Confindustria, Azerbaijan’s Matanat A and Italy’s Dromont Comec, “Improtex Industries” LLC and Leonardo Electronics, and Saloğlu and Italy’s Visionnaire – İPA and Biesse S.P.A. companies. These documents envisage joint production, services, research, project development, and experience exchange. The Azerbaijani delegation also held meetings with representatives of the Italian Trade Agency, Annatura Company, Scorpio Group, and Coldiretti Company.  

On September 6, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev delivered a speech at the session titled “Azerbaijan’s role in the new geopolitical environment” at the International Cernobbio Forum themed “Intelligence on the World, Europe, and Italy.”

In his speech, President Ilham Aliyev emphasized:

“I came here from Rome, where yesterday I had meetings with President Mattarella, who made a great speech this morning, and Prime Minister Meloni. During our meetings and discussions, we once again reconfirmed the strategic character of our bilateral ties. Italy and Azerbaijan have worked as strategic partners for many years. The corresponding declaration was adopted almost ten years ago. Our cooperation covers many areas. We have regular political contacts. This is my third visit to Italy since 2020, and President Mattarella paid a visit to Azerbaijan in 2018. High-level contacts demonstrate that we are very close partners.   

We have very active trade cooperation. Italy is Azerbaijan’s number one trading partner in the world. Last year, our trade turnover was close to 16 billion US dollars. We see potential for growth not only in the energy sector but also in other sectors. Azerbaijan is the Italy’s number one oil supplier and number two gas supplier. This is also an important part of our cooperation. [5]    

Energy supplies today clearly demonstrate that national security cannot be separated from energy security. The 3,500 km integrated pipeline system from Azerbaijan to Italy, known as the Southern Gas Corridor, today ensures energy security for ten countries. We now have ten countries receiving gas from Azerbaijan, seven of which are members of the European Union. That is probably why the European Commission calls Azerbaijan a pan-European gas supplier and a reliable partner.  

But as I said, the pipeline starts in Azerbaijan and ends in Italy. But its route, with extensions and interconnectors, covers a broad European and Eurasian geography with strong growth potential. Today we are in a process of negotiations with at least three European countries with respect to the gas supply.  

Of course, energy and trade are not the only part of our bilateral agenda. We are also actively working on humanitarian issues. The Italy-Azerbaijan University, which has already started functioning, is a great example of the diversification of our cooperation. Five leading Italian universities like Luiss, Sapienza, Bologna, Milan, and Torino, and Azerbaijan’s ADA University, have created this joint venture, which will be instrumental in our future cooperation. The students who are already studying and those who will study there will naturally be connected to Italy. They will know the Italian language, Italian culture and the great historical heritage of the Italian people.  

I start my introduction with this important bilateral part because it demonstrates that when relations are built on mutual trust, mutual respect, and recognition of mutual interests, then we see progress. That is how relations must be built between countries, which are situated far from each other and belong to different continents.”

The head of state of Azerbaijan also made remarks on the current geopolitical situation: “Talking about the geopolitical situation – because the topic of my introduction was exactly the role of Azerbaijan in the changing geopolitical environment – first of all, I would like to say that the biggest geopolitical change, not only in the Caucasus but in the broader region, was the restoration of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, which really demonstrates that international law can prevail, not only when a legal framework exists but also when you have courage and real strength.  

For 30 years, our internationally recognized territories were under Armenian occupation. Despite numerous decisions and resolutions by international organizations, including four legally binding United Nations Security Council resolutions demanding the immediate withdrawal of Armenian forces from our lands, the occupation continued. The OSCE created a special group in order to tackle this issue. For 28 years, this group produced zero results. This demonstrates that international law alone is not enough to ensure justice and peace. So you must have other factors on the table. 

In 2020, a large part of our then-occupied territories was liberated during the 44-day Patriotic War. But that was not the end of the story, as separatists continued to undermine sovereignty of Azerbaijan. Last September, it was the last full stop when sovereignty of Azerbaijan was totally restored. The conflict actually ended as it should have. 

This is a good example for many other countries, which struggle for their territorial integrity and sovereignty without success. In our case, I think Azerbaijan demonstrated that international law, along with strong political will, consolidation of the society, and physical strength, can make a serious geopolitical change. After that, for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union, we can achieve peace in the Southern Caucasus. It is reachable. The latest developments in the negotiation track between Azerbaijan and Armenia demonstrate that. We are actively continuing negotiations, with almost 80 percent of the peace treaty paragraphs having been approved. We have already started not only the border delimitation process, but also demarcation. Yes, it’s a first small step. Only about 13 kilometers of our border, which is more than 1000 kilometers. But it is a step in the right direction. 

We hope that Azerbaijan’s initiative to start peace negotiations will result in a peace treaty that will be important not only for the Southern Caucasus but for all parts of the world. That will be an example of how countries that have fought for 30 years, with Azerbaijan suffering from aggression and the total devastation of almost 20 percent of its territory, can work together to achieve peace. 

The final point which I want to raise in my introductory comments is that, in two months, we will host the largest climatic conference, COP29. The decision was made last December. We have had less than one year to prepare. It is important that the decision was made by the consensus of almost 200 countries. We consider it as a sign of respect for Azerbaijan. For the first time in history, COP will be held in our region. 

We are actively working in order to build bridges between different actors on the global arena. As we all know, the climatic topic is something which divides countries and peoples. There are mutual claims and accusations about who is more responsible for damaging the planet and who has to pay more and etc. While not being a major actor on international arena, I think it is achievable for us to build bridges between the Global South and the Global North.”

On September 6th, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met with CEO of Italy’s Ansaldo Energia company Fabrizio Fabbri in Cernobbio, Italy. 

The discussion highlighted Ansaldo Energia’s involvement in the reconstruction of Azerbaijan’s largest Thermal Power Plant in Mingachevir. The fact that four gas turbines made by Ansaldo Energia for the newly constructed plant with a capacity of 1280 megawatts have been delivered to Azerbaijan to install there was noted at the meeting. The project is expected to be completed by the end of this year or early next year.  

They also shared their views on potential collaboration with Ansaldo Energia in the field of “green energy.” The company expressed strong interest in contributing to the enhancement of Azerbaijan’s energy system and indicated its intention to collaborate with Azerbaijan’s Azerenerji OJSC. The signing of cooperation agreements between Ansaldo Energia, Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Energy, and Azerenerji was mentioned, with confidence expressed for a joint activity in the future.  On September 6th, the president of Azerbaijan concluded his historic visit to the Republic of Italy.