BAKU (Azerbaijan) Sept 12 (Bernama) — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak was accorded an official welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace, here, Friday in conjunction with his first visit to Azerbaijan.
Upon arrival at the palace here, the Malaysian premier was greeted by President IIham Aliyev.
Najib then inspected a guard-of-honor mounted by the Azerbaijan armed forces before being introduced to the cabinet ministers and the diplomatic corps by Ilham Aliyev.
This is the first official visit by a Malaysian prime minister to Azerbaijan.
Apart from the four-eyed meeting between Najib and President Ilham Aliyev, and the bilateral meeting jointly chaired by both leaders, they are expected to sign the joint declaration between Malaysia and Azerbaijan, which outlines both countries’ commitment to enhancing bilateral and economic relations in various fields.
The meetings will provide an excellent opportunity for both leaders to discuss issues of mutual interest including regional and international issues, and to foster cooperation through new ventures to further strengthen bilateral ties between Malaysia and Azerbaijan.
In 2013, total trade with Azerbaijan amounted to US$ 18.3 million (RM57.7 million), with exports to Azerbaijan worth US$ 15.3 million (RM48.2 million) and imports from Azerbaijan worth US$ 3 million (RM9.6 million).
The prime minister, accompanied by wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, is on a two-day visit to this country at the invitation of IIham Aliyev. They arrived here on Thursday night.
They are scheduled to return home tonight.
— BERNAMA
