Azerbaijan’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Yalchin Rafiyev, said relations with Qatar were a top priority for his country, emphasising the deep-rooted ties spanning nearly three decades, Report informs, citing The Peninsula.
Rafiyev recently visited Qatar, where he also delivered a keynote speech at Doha Forum: Youth Edition 2023.
During his visit, Rafiyev also engaged in bilateral talks with the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi, and discussed the potential for expanding Qatar-Azerbaijan ties in trade and other areas of common interest.
During the interview, while acknowledging the existing strong political ties, Rafiyev expressed the need to elevate economic relations between the two nations.
“I don’t think that for the moment, economic relations are at the desired level, but there is a huge potential, which we will be doing our best to utilise as soon as possible,” he said.
Rafiyev also discussed the opportunities arising from the recent liberation of Azerbaijani territories. “The liberation of Azerbaijani territories opens new opportunities, such as how we can work together to bring Qatari investment to these territories, what we can do better to achieve vibrant trade relations between the two countries.”
On the economic front, Rafiyev outlined specific areas of focus. “We have some areas that are in our minds to focus on, specifically like green energy, smart technologies, and of course, we should also use our comparative advantages of every one of us.”
One tangible step towards deeper cooperation is the establishment of an investment group within the joint commission of Qatar and Azerbaijan. Rafiyev explained, “This investment group will be tasked to prepare some investment projects in both directions.” He hinted that the joint group would be formed following an anticipated visit of Azerbaijan Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov to Qatar in 2024.