As reported previously, Chair of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova is in the Indonesian capital city of Jakarta for the 8th summit of the G20 Parliamentary Speakers (P20).

On 5 October, Sahiba Gafarova met Chair of the People’s Representative Council of the Republic of Indonesia Puan Maharani as part of the visit.

Sahiba Gafarova witnessed satisfaction with their encounter and thanked Puan Maharani for the invitation to take part in the P20 Summit, both as Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament and Chair of the Non-Aligned Movement’s Parliamentary Network. This event was dedicated to the really rather relevant topics that concern everyone in the modern world, Sahiba Gafarova pointed out.

The Azerbaijani-Indonesian diplomatic relations had turned thirty years in 2022; multi-level reciprocal visits stimulated the advancement of the bilateral relations, Mrs Gafarova said then.

Also, the mutually advantageous co-operation of our states under the aegis of a number of influential international organisations was brought up. Besides, Sahiba Gafarova remarked upon the considerable contribution of the inter-parliamentary links to the progress of the bilateral relations before stressing the need to continue broadening the fruitful interaction of our legislatures and, particularly, of the friendship groups. Two-way visits play a great part in this process. On another note, our MPs pursue efficient joint activities in several international parliamentary organisations, such as, to mention but a few, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the OIC Parliamentary Assembly, the Asian Parliamentary Assembly and the Parliamentary Network of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Further, Mrs Gafarova talked about Indonesia having joined the resolutions of the UN General Assembly, the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation and the Non-Aligned Movement during the years of the Armenian occupation. She underscored the intense appreciation of the Indonesian backing given to the just cause of Azerbaijan.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis also emphasised Indonesia’s support for the Azerbaijani initiatives within the frameworks of the Non-Aligned Movement.

Chair of the People’s Representative Council of the Republic of Indonesia Puan Maharani, in turn, said that she was glad to see Chair of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova in her country and touched on the prominent level of our inter-state relations. Mrs Maharani underlined Indonesia’s being interested in furthering its interaction in Azerbaijan in every area available, saying then that Azerbaijan had a special importance for Indonesia and that the Azerbaijani embassy in Indonesia was our country’s first diplomatic outpost to emerge in SE Asia. Mrs Maharani expressed her satisfaction with the current progress of the two-way connexions and said she was certain this progress would continue.

Next, the Chair of the People’s Representative Council brought up the significance of the two legislatures’ roles in making the inter-state relations stronger and the importance that the Indonesian Parliament attached to moving forth its connexions with the Azerbaijani counterpart. The mutually profitable joint activities of the two legislative assemblies are of utmost importance; for instance, the linkage amongst the inter-parliamentary friendship groups matters in terms of experience and information exchange, in the opinion of Mrs Maharani. The groups’ interaction, contacts and meetings should be intensified and made more frequent, she remarked before stating the intention to continue the mutual support in international organisations. The declarations of the Indonesian Parliament’s friendship group in support of Azerbaijan’s territorial wholeness and sovereignty were referenced then.

The Parliamentary Network of the Non-Aligned Movement is adequate to the Movement’s spirit and goals, and Indonesia is wholly behind the Network’s work; this platform is extremely useful for the participating countries, according to Mrs Maharani.

The two parliamentary speakers also exchanged opinions about other matters of shared interest.

The Press and Public Relations Department
The Milli Majlis