During his visit to the Republic of Italy, SOCAR President Rovshan Najaf held a series of meetings and attended an official reception organized in Rome on the occasion of May 28 - Independence Day.

Najaf met with Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, Italy’s Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, and Adolfo Urso, Minister for Enterprises and Made in Italy, The Caspian Post reports via Azertac.

During the meetings, the sides hailed the sustainable development of relations between Azerbaijan and Italy in the energy sector, based on successful economic cooperation. In this context, SOCAR’s acquisition of shares in Italiana Petroli from API Holding was described as an important step in expanding cooperation between the two countries in the energy sector.

The parties also exchanged views on energy security, SOCAR’s activities in Italy, and other issues of mutual interest.

As part of the visit, the SOCAR President attended an official reception organized by the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Italy on the occasion of May 28 - Independence Day. On the sidelines of the event, the official presentation of SOCAR Italia took place.

Addressing the event, the SOCAR President spoke about the development path and historic achievements of independent Azerbaijan, founded by National Leader Heydar Aliyev and successfully advanced under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev.

He noted that relations between Azerbaijan and Italy have developed over the years on the basis of mutual trust and close cooperation, emphasizing that bilateral ties continue to expand dynamically today, with mutually beneficial partnership growing in the energy sector as well as in other areas. He stated that the official launch of SOCAR Italia, as well as SOCAR’s acquisition of shares in Italiana Petroli, are clear examples of successful cooperation between the two countries.

The event also featured speeches by Rashad Aslanov, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Italy; Edmondo Cirielli, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Italy; and Licia Ronzulli, Vice President of the Italian Senate and Senator.