During his official visit to the Vatican, Azerbaijan's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jeyhun Bayramov, met with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See's Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, on November 25.
The meeting focused on current state and prospects for development of relations between Azerbaijan and the Holy See, regional and global developments, as well as opportunities for cooperation within international platforms, The Caspian Post reports.
The officials stressed the importance of maintaining the increasing dynamics of high-level reciprocal visits in fostering cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Holy See. In this vein, they underscored the significance of the official visits of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Vatican, the visit of First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva to the country this October, as well as the meetings and events held during this visit.
The meeting highlighted the preservation and restoration projects of humanitarian character implemented to date in the Holy See on the initiative of Mehriban Aliyeva and with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, as well as those planned for the future. They stressed the importance of Mehriban Aliyeva visiting the Bambino Gesù Pediatric Hospital of the Holy See, the largest pediatric hospital and research center in Europe, and the collaboration with Azerbaijan in this regard.
They fondly recalled the visits of Pope John Paul II in 2002 and Pope Francis in 2016 to Baku, the presentation and ground-blessing ceremony for the site of the Catholic church to be constructed in Baku in honor of Saint John Paul II, and the ongoing progress of the church’s construction.
They expressed confidence that the 35th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, to be marked in 2027, would give additional impetus to the development of bilateral ties.
The successes achieved by Azerbaijan with regard to religious tolerance and in advancing intercultural and interfaith dialogue, as well as the progress achieved to preserve and restore religious monuments, including Christian temples, were discussed.
The meeting underscored that Azerbaijan, a country where representatives of different religions and cultures coexist, implements a successful policy that contributes to international peace and mutual understanding.
The sides expressed concern over the impacts of global climate change. The Azerbaijani FM informed the Vatican official about the Azerbaijan’s efforts and initiatives during its COP29 Presidency. He also mentioned Azerbaijan’s contribution to energy security, the country’s role in developing the transport corridors, as well as its relations with the Central Asian countries.
During the meeting, Minister Jeyhun Bayramov briefed Archbishop Gallagher on the Azerbaijan-Armenia reconciliation process, the agreements reached during the historic Washington Summit and the practical steps taken toward their implementation, as well as the latest developments in the region in the post-conflict period.
The meeting also addressed other bilateral and regional matters of shared interest.
