The opening ceremony of the 20^th Session of the Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Member States (PUIC) hosted by the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the city of Baku took place on 24 June.

The National Anthem of the Republic of Azerbaijan was sounded at the ceremony.

The Ayahs of the Quran were read aloud then.

The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr Ilham Aliyev had sent an address to the event participants. That address was read out by Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova (the text of the address is released to the media).

Then, the ceremony of the transition of the PUIC chairmanship was held and a video address of Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia and chairwoman of the PUIC Conference’s 19^th Session Puan Maharani was displayed.

In her address, Puan Maharani remarked that the Organisation had contributed importantly to the furtherance of dialogue, peace and sustainable development amongst the Member states over the past period. She thanked the Azerbaijani side for the high organisational level of the Conference and expressed a confidence that the Session would remain in memory thanks to fruitful discussions and important decisions, and wished Azerbaijan success with the presidency in the Organisation.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis and President of the 20^th Session of the Conference of the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Member States Sahiba Gafarova delivered an introductory speech then.

Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova remarked that the Parliament of Azerbaijan was assuming the PUIC chairmanship with complete commitment to developing the Union’s principles, goals and shared values.

Speaker Sahiba Gafarova said that the Milli Majlis chairmanship of the PUIC reflected Azerbaijan’s dedication to the cause of strengthening solidarity and close ties with the Islamic World. As the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev had said, development of the relations with the Muslim World, bilaterally and within our common organisations, is one of the foreign political priorities with Azerbaijan.

It was observed in the speech that the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and its Member States have always demonstrated solidarity with Azerbaijan, be it during the occupation of our territories and in the post-conflict period. The OIC and the PUIC have passed more than 100 decisions and resolutions condemning the Armenian aggression and supporting Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in the 30 years past.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis expressed gratitude to the Member States and Member Parliaments for their unvaried support to the just position of Azerbaijan and said that our country, which values the Islamic solidarity principles highly, is actively involved in promoting it and strengthening it further. Azerbaijan has proposed various initiatives, such as the foundation of the OIC Youth Forum and the OIC Labour Centre, and has more than once been elected to host various events.

Speaker Sahiba Gafarova remarked that Azerbaijan has organised numerous events and put forward initiatives aiming to promote the Islamic culture and to demonstrate the true essence of the Islam as a religion of peace and clemency.

She stressed the world community’s clear awareness of the position taken by Azerbaijan on the Question of Palestinian and of the humanitarian aid Azerbaijan has provided.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis said that, despite its rich history, cultural heritage and great natural and human resources the Islamic World still encounters serious difficulties that wait to be solved. Poverty, social and economic inequality, armed conflicts, humanitarian crises, terrorism and extremism hinder and constrain efforts at sustainable development seriously. Speaker Sahiba Gafarova remarked that the Islamic World needs unity and solidarity with the eternal Islamic values such as peace, tolerance, harmony and justice in order that it can overcome all those difficulties and realise its potential fully. She stressed that joint action, mutual support and work on achieving the common goals have never been as important to the Muslim countries as they are now, in the modern world that is becoming increasingly complex and interconnected.

It was said in the address that the Parliaments should play an important role in addressing all those issues. As representatives of the friendly and fraternal nations sharing the religion, we ought to promote solidarity, dialogue and unity as against contradictions and division.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis emphasised that the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Member States has become an important and effective solidarity strengthening mechanism. This Union is an important platform on which to develop co-operation, joint activities and elaboration of unified stances on common issues. We can contribute to the resolution of the difficulties encountered by our communities and we can achieve better prosperity of our peoples through parliamentary diplomacy, dialogue and exchange of experience.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis observed that the delegations have been holding effective and productive meetings within the Parliamentary Union bodies these few days past. Those discussions demonstrate our shared determination to strengthen our co-operation further and to find joint solutions to common challenges. The topic of the 20^th Session of ‘Promoting Sustainable and Inclusive Economic Development through Parliamentary Cooperation’ is timely and extremely relevant in this context.

Stressing that the growing interconnectedness of global economy generates new co-operation opportunities for our states, Sahiba Gafarova said that we can better use the enormous potential of our region for the good of future generations by strengthening economic ties, expanding relations, promoting investments and facilitating exchange of knowledge and innovations.

The Speaker of the Milli Majlis went further to say that sustainable and inclusive economic development is a common goal of our countries and that achieving it requires co-ordinated efforts on all the levels as well as commitment to co-operation, including via parliamentary connections. She said that the Parliaments of the Organisation’s Member States could work jointly on clearing the barriers in the path of trade and investments as well as on expanding customs co-operation and promoting effective application of the existing trade and economic co-operation mechanisms of the OIC.

Speaker Sahiba Gafarova said by co-operating we can also maintain development of safe and sustainable transport, transit and logistical corridors which reinforce regional ties, facilitate trade and provide for sustained economic interaction amongst the OIC Member States.

Besides, the Speaker of the Milli Majlis remarked that promotion of co-operation in energy security and renewable energy, too, will expedite the achievement of our goals.

She said in conclusion of her speech that the Parliamentary Union of the OIC Member States provided an important institutional foundation for our Parliaments’ communication, co-ordination and co-operation. The Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan is prepared to co-operate closely with all the Member Parliaments to strengthen the Union’s role and to develop the joint priorities as it assumes the chairmanship in the PUIC.

Secretary General of the OIC Parliamentary Union Mouhamed Khouraichi Niass greeted the ceremony participants then.

In his speech, Secretary General Mouhamed Khouraichi Niass thanked the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev for the care and support to the Conference. He also stressed that the event was organised to high standards under the supervision of the Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova. The Secretary General said that the world encountered serious challenges threatening international peace and security today. He said that promotion of peace, dialogue and mutual understanding is of special importance in such conditions.

The items on the agenda of the Session were addressed then. Several organisational issues were discussed first. New Members of the Organisation’s Bureau were determined. Deputy Head of the Azerbaijani Delegation to the PUIC Jeyhun Mammadov was elected the Session’s rapporteur. Also, the report by the Organisation’s Secretary General was approved and several other matters were considered.

Then, the Speakers of Parliament of the Member States addressed the Session.

Those who took the floor at the event were Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye (GNAT) Numan Kurtulmuş, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Iran Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Speaker of the Assembly of the Republic of the Republic of Mozambique Margarida Talapa, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Mazen Torki Al-Qadi, Speaker of the Consultative Assembly of the Republic of Niger Mamoudu Harouna Djingarey, Speaker of the Consultative Assembly of the Sultanate of Oman Khalid Hilal Al-Maawali, Speaker of the Consultative Assembly of the State of Qatar Hassan bin Abdulla Al-Ghanim, Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Yemen Sultan Saeed Albarkani and Speaker of the Majlis of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ziya Öztürkler. The speakers underlined the importance of strengthening solidarity and co-operation in view of the challenges that the Islamic World is facing. They said that parliamentary diplomacy plays an essential role in the promotion of peace, security and sustainable development. Attention was drawn to the importance of joint action in addressing the problems concerning Muslim countries. Support was voiced for strengthening dialogue and mutual confidence amongst the OIC Member States as well as for continuing the efforts to deepen their co-operation.

Deputy Speaker of the Milli Majlis and head of the Azerbaijani Delegation to the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Member States Rafael Huseynov spoke after the intermission.

Speaking at the Session, Rafael Huseynov emphasised that the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and its Parliamentary Union have covered a significant path of development, accumulated valuable experience and demonstrated the ability to influence global processes. He said that those ties help strengthen mutual support and generate co-operation opportunities in resolution of conflicts.

Addresses followed by Second Vice-President of the People’s Legislative Assembly of Burkina Faso Haoua Fofana, First Deputy Speaker of the Federal National Council of the United Arab Emirates Tariq Humaid Altayer, First Deputy Speaker of the Council of Representatives of Iraq Adnan Faihan Musa, Vice-President of the Senate of Chad Mbang Hadji Woli, Vice-President of the Senate of Côte d’Ivoire Sarra Sako Nee Fadika, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Kingdom of Morocco Mohamed Ghayat, First Deputy Speaker of the Kyrgyz Republic Yildiz Taalaybek Kizi, Vice-President of the Transitional National Council of Mali Mohamed Ousmane Ag Mohamedoun and First Vice-President of the Transitional National Council of Guinea-Bissau Sanha Fodé Garamba, parliamentary representatives of the Member States’ Parliaments and delegates of international organisations. They spoke of the importance of solidarity, co-operation and joint action given the common challenges in the Islamic World.

The Session will continue tomorrow.

The Press and Public Relations Department

The Milli Majlis