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Hello! Several weeks ago you visited Baku. Please tell us about the trip.
Alexei Pushkov, chairman of the Russian State Duma Committee on International Affairs
I was invited to Baku by the head of PACE Azerbaijani delegation.
We are cooperation with the Azerbaijani delegation of PACE;
we belong to one group of European democrats.
I was invited as the head of the Russian delegation.
I met President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the head of the presidential administration Mr. Mekhtiyev,
representatives of the Foreign Ministry.
We discussed a wide spectrum of problems.
The bilateral relations between Russia and Azerbaijan were discussed,
as well as prospects of Azerbaijanís participation in the Eastern Partnership,
relations between Azerbaijan and the EU, and the regional problems ñ
first of all, the Iranian issue, the developments in Turkey, and the Syrian crisis.
We touched on various problems and concluded that the positions by Russia and Azerbaijan were close on many issues,
of course not on all of them, but on many problems.
I believe Azerbaijan can be considered as a strategic partner for Russia,
while we can be considered as a strategic partner of Azerbaijan in the region
and in the sphere of relations with Europe and the European Atlantic Alliance
Could you sum up the results of the visit by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister to Moscow?
I didnít participate in the negotiations with the Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan.
I know that in general the results are positive.
It is well-known that we had a difficult period in our relations
which was connected with shutdown of the Qabala radio location station and some other issues.
I think today we begin to way out of the period.
Various countries have difficulties in relations sometimes.
It is important that these difficulties wonít determine the content of relations.
We are overcoming the negative background which appeared as a result of the fact
that there was no mutual agreement on the Qabala RLS.
Our relations are not based only on this factor;
we begin to cooperate on regional and global problems at a new level.
Azerbaijan is obviously a very important state.
It is situated in the region which is a key for the world politics;
I believe Azerbaijan has a great potential.
We could rely on each other: we ñ on Azerbaijanís potential, Azerbaijan ñ
on the potential of Russia as one of the leading powers of the global politics.
I would say that prospects of our relations with Azerbaijan are better than they were a year ago, for instance.
The contacts with Baku confirm this.