Asaf Hajiyev

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Participation of Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, in the International Conference on “The role of Parlamentarians in Boosting Economic Cooperation and Cultural Ties along the Silk Road”, Baku, 13-14 March 2018

Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, participated in the International Conference on “The role of Parlamentarians in Boosting Economic Cooperation and Cultural Ties along the Silk Road” held in Baku, during 13-14 March 2018.

This Conference was jointly organized by the Milli Mejlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Silk Road Support Group of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and it brought together parliamentarians and ministers from Albania, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria, Belarus, Croatia, Greece, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, FYR Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Switzerland and Turkey.

Mr. George Tsereteli, President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Mr. Ivan Brajovic, President of the Parliament of Montenegro, Mr. Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr. Damdin Tsogtbaatar, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mongolia, Mr. Mircea Ciopraga, Secretary General of the Permanent Secretariat of the Intergovernmental Commission on Transport Corridor of Europe, Caucasus and Asia (TRACECA) and Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, took the floor at the Opening Ceremony.

The participants debated on the following subjects: Enhancing the mutually beneficial economic cooperation and trade, Facilitation of transportation and logistics and Building trust, exchanging culture and promoting dialogue.

The PABSEC Secretary General addressed the participants in the Opening ceremony and stressed the importance of the geographical position of the BSEC Region, which is situated at the crossroads of major transportation routes from the East to the West (Silk Road) and from the North to the South (Viking Road). He underlined that the Black Sea Region represents an outstanding source of oil and gas for the world markets and informed about different economic projects in the BSEC Region: the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, which have already been achieved, and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline Project (TANAP), which are under construction and can be considered as a part of the Silk Road.

Mr. Hajiyev noted that the Silk Road Project represents one of the main transportation routes for the world economy and underlined that alongside with its economic contribution, the Silk Road enriches different cultures and religions, bringing understanding among people with different mentalities and religions. In this regard, he informed the gathering that the PABSEC appointed a Special Representative to the Silk Road Project, due to the particular importance of this project.

The Silk Road Support Group (SRG) of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly was established on 8 July 2017, during the Annual Session of the OSCE PA in Minsk, upon the initiative of the Vice-President of the OSCE PA, Mr. Azay Guliyev, and represents a platform which promotes mutually beneficial economic and trade cooperation, developing transport corridors, strengthening political dialogue and cultural ties in the OSCE region, in conformity with the relevant legal frameworks and the international law.

At the end of the Conference, the Baku Declaration has been adopted.