Address by Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, at the NATO Resolute Support Mission Ministerial
Address by Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, at the NATO Resolute Support Mission Ministerial
Brussels, December 2, 2014
Dear Mr. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg,
First of all, let me congratulate You on the appointment to this very important position. It is noteworthy that the first Ministerial meeting you chair in this capacity involves NATO partners. Mr. Rasmussen was actively engaged with reliable partners, including my country and I am confident in a productive work with You as well. I also want to praise your selection of Ambassador Ismail Aramaz as the next NATO Senior Civilian Representative, this is a right choice.
Just yesterday President Ghani and Dr. Abdullah were in Baku and had a very intensive and open exchange of views on future of Afghanistan with President Aliyev and members of Azerbaijan’s Cabinet. Afghan Government has huge agenda of reforms. It is not only security. Of course, security is first pillar for sustainability. A lot of investments must be involved into industry and infrastructure. My country faced war 20 years ago, but we were able to pass through all these challenges and achieved big progress. Therefore Azerbaijan sees existing needs of the country and can be a model for Afghanistan.
Azerbaijan assists Afghanistan in many areas, including education and training for the development of human capital. Railroad connection is very important for Afghanistan. Currently there is only one available railroad connection in the country. Railroad project connecting Afghanistan with Europe passing through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Türkiye is an important element for sustainable development of the country.
Launching Resolute Support Mission is important for future of Afghanistan. Azerbaijan will play its part in this mission by providing significant contribution in terms of troops, training, financial assistance, and transit.
Developments in our part of the world have shown that international community’s support to Afghanistan should continue in the coming years to bring more and more success.
Thank You.