The Senate of Spain on Thursday hosted a conference on theme "Azerbaijan in Europe today. Establishing trust between Azerbaijan and Spain", dedicated to the expansion of partnership between the two countries and military aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan.
The event, which was held on the initiative and organizational support of the Head of Azerbaijani delegation to Euronest, MP Elkhan Suleymanov, was attended by a delegation led by the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Chairman of the State Committee on Refugees and IDPs Ali Hasanov.
From the Azerbaijani side, the conference was attended by the ambassador of Azerbaijan to Spain Altay Efendiyev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development Sevinj Hasanova, Head of the Azerbaijani delegation to Euronest PA, Elkhan Suleymanov, members of Azerbaijani Parliament.
The conference was attended by 80 senators, academicians, professors, and representatives of media, NGOs and civil society of Spain.
The event was opened by Juan Jose Lucas, Vice-President of the Senate of Spain. He said Azerbaijan is an important country for Spain. "Spain is interested in the development of bilateral relations with Azerbaijan," he emphasized.
Vice-President said that today, Azerbaijan is suffering from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which resulted in the occupation of its territories and about one million refugees. He expressed the hope that the OSCE Minsk Group will foster the settlement of the conflict.
Head of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly Euronest, MP Elkhan Suleymanov noted the similarity of traditions and culture of Spanish and Azerbaijani people. He expressed confidence that this visit will open a new stage in the Spanish-Azerbaijani bilateral relations.
Touching upon the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Suleymanov said that the occupation of 20 percent of the territories is the biggest problem of Azerbaijan.
Referring to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Hasanov brought to the attention that the conflict having a 200-year history, has intensified in the period of Tsarist Russia. The Deputy Prime Minister said that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is dangerous not only for Azerbaijan, but also for the whole region and the international community, as the occupied territories of Azerbaijan are used for the cultivation of drug.
Hasanov said Spanish specialists can join the ongoing transportation, construction and energy projects in Azerbaijan, as Azerbaijan is interested in development of relations with Spain in all fields.

AzerTAc