Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova continues her official visit to Austria, and as part of it she met with President of the Federal Council of the Austrian Parliament Günter Kovacs on 21 June.

As their conversation went on, Günter Kovacs mentioned Azerbaijan’s being a dependable energy partner of Europe, stressed the need for two-way visits to push our inter-parliamentary relations further and drew attention to the opportunities available in this area. The current visit of Mrs Gafarova demonstrates the two sides’ shared intention to promote their inter-parliamentary connexion, in the opinion of Mr Kovacs.

In turn, Sahiba Gafarova said her thanks for the cordial hospitality extended to the Azerbaijani parliamentary delegation before declaring her assuredness that the first ever official trip to Austria of Chair of the Azerbaijani Parliament was going to bear well on the progress of our association.  

The diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and Austria were established thirty years ago; visits by Heads of State and governmental officials have proved as crucial for the connexions’ growth as the bilateral documents signed to date, in the opinion of Mrs Gafarova.

As for inter-legislature co-operation’s perspective advance, the friendship groups in both parliaments are central to it, according to the leader of the Milli Majlis.

Mr Kovacs was then supplied with ample information about the path of development covered by Azerbaijan, a country that founded the first democratic republic in the East 105 years ago and is today the most advanced in her region. Our country is multicultural and tolerant; followers of different religions and diverse ethnic communities coexist in Azerbaijan in prosperity, peace and tranquillity. In essence, multiculturalism is a way of life with the Azerbaijani people.

Madam Speaker also talked about the current state of affairs in our region since the end of the 44 days’ Patriotic War, and about the intensive reclamation of the Azerbaijani lands rescued from occupation. Armenia had held 20% of our country’s territory in captivity for thirty years, and all those thirty years, the adversities of the double standards that exist in the world were visited upon Azerbaijan. International decisions and resolutions on unconditional cessation of the Armenian occupation of the Azerbaijani territories had been ignored consistently until Azerbaijan enforced the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and freed her provinces herself in 2020, Mrs Gafarova continued.

Azerbaijan is building new towns and villages in the freed Garabagh and East Zangazur now. The ‘Grand Return’ programme has already been launched to reintegrate the former IDPs into their rightful homelands.

President of the Bundesrat Günter Kovacs remarked in response that Austria condoned and supported the peace initiatives of Azerbaijan.

With the conversation over, Sahiba Gafarova left a signature in the memorial book and was shown around the offices of the Upper House of the Austrian Parliament then.

The Press and Public Relations Department
The Milli Majlis