ILIA DARCHIASHVILI HAS PARTICIPATED IN THE GEORGIA-AZERBAIJAN-TURKEY TRIPARTITE MINISTERIAL MEETING IN BAKU

On 15 March 2024, the ninth meeting of the foreign ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Georgia and the Republic of Turkey was held in Baku, with the participation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, Ilia Darchiashvili, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Jeyhun Bayramov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey, Hakan Fidan.

During the meeting, the sides highlighted the outstanding cooperation among the three countries, both bilaterally and in various multilateral contexts. They particularly underscored the significance of the trilateral cooperation format in promoting sustainable development, stability, and peace in the region. The discussions placed special emphasis on politics, trade, economy, energy, agriculture, transportation, culture, and humanitarian activities. A positive evaluation was given to the effective sectoral collaboration within the trilateral framework and the regular meetings covering parliamentary, defense, economic, and other areas.

The sides once again positively assessed the wide range of cooperation based on the principles of friendship, mutual understanding, respect and support for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Special attention was focused on the progress and implementation of common transit and energy projects. The sides reviewed the transit potential of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey. In this regard, they noted the importance of the full implementation of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway in the near future, along with the significance of trilateral collaboration amidst the growing international significance of the Middle Corridor initiative. They expressed their readiness to continue coordinated action for the realization of the mentioned projects in accordance with the interests of each country participating in the project.

The sides congratulated Georgia on obtaining candidate status and acknowledged the successes achieved in its journey toward European integration.

Following the trilateral ministerial meeting, a joint statement – Baku Declaration – was signed.

Within the framework of the tripartite Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ilia Darchiashvili also held bilateral meetings with his Azerbaijani and Turkish counterparts.

The participants agreed that the next ministerial meeting, following the principle of rotation, will take place in 2025 in the Republic of Turkey.