Chair of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova had a meeting with Chairman of the National Assembly of the Kingdom of Cambodia Akka Moha Ponhea Chakri Heng Samrin in the course of her official visit to that country.

The head of the Cambodian parliament greeted his Azerbaijani colleague cordially and told her that her coming to Phnom Penh was a sign of the friendly ties between our countries. Congratulations were in order on the Milli Majlis having obtained a status of observer in the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly; the Cambodian parliament’s backing in this matter was reiterated, too.

Established 28 years ago, the bilateral diplomatic relations reached a new and higher level thanks to the endeavours of the leaders of both states, according to Mr Heng Samrin who believes that Mrs Gafarova’s visit will help make the Cambodian-Azerbaijani co-operation yet more robust. And our parliamentarians will be co-operating more closely still and at various levels, Mr Heng Samrin added with conviction as he turned to the existing two-way inter-legislature connexions.

Cambodia finds it important to take part in the work done by the Non-Aligned Movement and its Parliamentary Network. Cambodian MPs were there at the first Network conference in Baku, said the Chairman of the National Assembly before congratulating the Speaker of the Milli Majlis on the high organisational standards achieved in staging and running that conference.

Mr Heng Samrin went further to inform Mrs Gafarova of the political course of his country, its results and the workings of the National Assembly.

Sahiba Gafarova said her thanks for the invitation to come to Cambodia and take part in the General Assembly; she also stressed the importance of high-status visits for the growth of our relations.

Besides, the leader of the Cambodian parliament was made aware of the progress of the Azerbaijani chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement, the biggest international organisation out there after second only to the UN. President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan acting as the NAM Chairman had put forward an initiative to create its parliamentary dimension, so the NAM Parliamentary Network was established in 2021. Its first conference took place with the attendance of a Cambodian delegation in Baku in June this year, Mrs Gafarova recalled praising the Cambodian side’s involvement. She proceeded to disclose the details of the work done by the NAM PN, its forthcoming tasks and the current run-up to the planned second Network conference, due to take place in Manama.

The role of the inter-parliamentary connexions in our states’ relations growing stronger was mentioned too, as was the possible contribution to the cause from the friendship groups active in both legislatures. Azerbaijan’s parliament recently formed a working group for inter-parliamentary connexions with Cambodia in a move that matters for the relations’ continued progress, Mrs Gafarova continued. Our parliamentarians co-operate fruitfully under the roofs of international organisations, besides; this kind of interaction is also important for the progress of our relations.

One more subject that Sahiba Gafarova brought up was the 44 days’ Patriotic War which saw Azerbaijan de-occupy her lands and since the end of which Azerbaijan has been making efforts to bring a lasting peace to the region. Remarkable steps are being taken now to eliminate the grim aftermath of the thirty-year-long Armenian occupation of the Azerbaijani territories as well as to strengthen regional peace and security. The ‘Big Return’ has been started in Azerbaijan already, meaning that the former displaced persons have begun to travel back to their homes. But the multitudes of mines that Armenia planted in those provinces do impede the on-going restoration and construction operations. Approximately 270 Azerbaijanis have either been killed or wounded in mine explosions in the two years since the end of the war, Sahiba Gafarova emphasised.

The people of Azerbaijan want peace. Even though it was our country that was subjected to aggression, it is also our country that continues the hard work to ensure peace and stability will be there and will last in the region, stressed the Chair of the Milli Majlis.

The conversation was followed by a ceremony of signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the legislatures of Azerbaijan and Cambodia, said to be poised to help broaden our parliamentary diplomacy and fortify the bilateral bonds.

The Press and Public Relations Department
The Milli Majlis