On November 10, 2021, Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeyhun Bayramov spoke at the general political debate of the 41st session of the General Conference of UNESCO.​

In his speech, the Minister stressed that at a time when the 75th anniversary of UNESCO is being celebrated, the relevance of the organization is greater than ever.​

Drawing attention to the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minister spoke about the serious measures taken by Azerbaijan from the first day to minimize the negative impact of the pandemic on its population, as well as the international community. He noted that 60% of our population has already been vaccinated and that our country has provided financial and humanitarian assistance to more than 30 countries to support the fight against the pandemic.​

It was noted that next year Azerbaijan will celebrate the 30th anniversary of membership in UNESCO, and it was emphasized that thanks to the efforts of the First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Mehriban Aliyeva, there is a strong, dynamic partnership with UNESCO.​

Thus, Azerbaijan supports the mission of UNESCO in various parts of the world and is one of the main partners of the organization in promoting intercultural dialogue. 

Azerbaijan has expressed its intention to join the Global Education Coalition established by UNESCO in March 2020. In this regard, Azerbaijan will contribute to activities aimed at helping students around the world, especially the most vulnerable.​

Minister Jeyhun Bayramov noted that within the framework of the aggressive policy of Armenia, which lasted for almost 30 years, a systematic policy was carried out to destroy, plunder and appropriate the cultural heritage of Azerbaijan.​

He spoke about the deliberate damage done to our cultural wealth during the occupation, complete destruction, plunder, change in the historical and cultural nature of our cultural heritage.

In addition, it was brought to the attention of the participants that Armenia deliberately prevents the return of refugees and IDPs to the territories liberated from the occupation, avoiding sharing maps of mined areas.​

It has been stressed that Azerbaijan has repeatedly warned UNESCO about these gross violations and illegal activities committed by Armenia and over the past 30 years raised the issue of the need to send a technical mission to the occupied territories. However, it was emphasized that Armenia prevented the sending of this mission, and this was acknowledged in the 2005 UNESCO report.​

The restoration and reconstruction work carried out by the Azerbaijani government in the post-conflict period, as well as the proper protection and restoration of all cultural and religious monuments in the liberated territories, regardless of their origin, were noted.

It was emphasized that Azerbaijan wants to cooperate with UNESCO in the post-conflict rehabilitation process, and Azerbaijan and UNESCO are actively engaged in dialogue in order to send a technical mission to our liberated territories. The sides agreed on a number of complex technical, legal and political issues that will ensure the effectiveness and independence of the mission.​

Azerbaijan is a candidate country for the UNESCO Executive Board for 2021-2025, and if elected, Azerbaijan will have the opportunity to further contribute and assist UNESCO in achieving its goals and ideals.​

The full text of the speech can be found at the following link: https://mfa.gov.az/en/news/no42521