27 Apr Interview with Mahir Mammad oglu Aliyev, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the UAE
How successful was Expo 2020 Dubai as an event, in your opinion, and could you summarise Azerbaijan’s participation in the Expo?
At the outset, I would like to express my warmest congratulations to the leadership and people of the brotherly UAE on the excellent organisation of Expo 2020 Dubai and their amazing success in hosting such a large-scale and historic global event.
Expo 2020 Dubai was the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia region and the first to be hosted by an Arab nation. This event took place over six months, with 192 country pavilions and over 23 million visitors, under the theme “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future” and it established a bridge between the participating nations in order to exchange new ideas and future cooperation perspectives.
Azerbaijan was one of the first countries that supported and confirmed their participation in Expo 2020 Dubai. First Vice President of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva paid special attention to the participation of Azerbaijan at the event and Azerbaijan was among the first countries to launch the construction of their national pavilion at the Expo.
Azerbaijan was represented at Expo 2020 Dubai by a national pavilion that was based on a theme of “Seeds for the Future”. The Azerbaijani national pavilion, which was organised by the Heydar Aliyev Center, featured videos highlighting the country’s rich history, cultural legacy and nature. It was one of the most visited pavilions at the Expo and visitors enjoyed learning about Azerbaijan’s extensive culture, geography and heritage. Over the six months that the Expo was open, our pavilion hosted a number of cultural and economic events and meetings in which ministers and heads of governmental bodies participated. These allowed us to explore new cooperation opportunities with the attending countries and, especially, with the UAE. Azerbaijan celebrated its national day at Expo 2020 Dubai on November 18, when we brought together high-level officials from both countries, who enjoyed impressive cultural activities at Al Wasl Plaza and the Azerbaijani pavilion.
I would like to take this opportunity to express our deep thanks to the government of the UAE for its full support to us over this period — it’s highly appreciated by our side.
Last summer, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev expressed his satisfaction with the existing state of relations between Azerbaijan and the UAE, as well as his desire to strengthen the ties of economic cooperation between the two countries. He called for the deepening of strategic partnerships over the next 10 years through the creation of new investment opportunities that focused on several vital sectors, such as infrastructure, logistics, transportation, renewable energy and tourism. How would you describe the political and economic relationship between Azerbaijan and the UAE, and what are your goals for the future?
Azerbaijan attaches particular importance to the development of friendly relations and is determined to further strengthen our partnership with the UAE, a country that shares common cultural, historical and religious values with us.
This year, we mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and the UAE. Over those years, Azerbaijan and the UAE have maintained successful and mutually beneficial collaboration in various fields to serve both countries’ national interests and development aspirations. Of course, we have to emphasise the significant role of the political will and close friendly relations of the two countries’ leaders in achieving the current high level of bilateral cooperation. This provides a solid ground for enhancing joint action between the UAE and Azerbaijan in order to further raise levels of bilateral relations.
President Ilham Aliyev hailed the successful development of relations between the two countries in political, economic, investment and other areas when he recently received the UAE’s Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber. At that meeting, President Ilham Aliyev described the implementation of the 230MW Garadagh Solar Power Plant, which will be built in Azerbaijan by the UAE’s Masdar, as a good example of ensuring mutual interests and opportunities.
Here, we have to mention the recent phone conversation between President Ilham Aliyev and the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. During that conversation, they both commended the development of bilateral relations and exchanged views on the prospects for further expansion of cooperation in economic, trade, energy and other areas. During the conversation, they also exchanged views on ensuring stability in the world energy market amid the events in Ukraine, and other issues on the international and regional agenda that are of mutual interest.
Azerbaijan and the UAE enjoy close cooperation and coordination in the framework of international organisations, which enhances their roles and contributions to peace, security and progress in our region and the world.
In addition, Azerbaijan is one of the main tourist destinations for UAE citizens and we are very happy to witness an annually growing number of UAE citizens visiting our country. Azerbaijan — with its economic diversity, geographical position and promising opportunities — is also an optimal place for UAE business circles to engage in commercial activities and investments. Azerbaijan-UAE investment cooperation is developing rapidly and I would note that the value of Emirati investments in Azerbaijan up to 2021 amounted to $2.5 billion through projects in oil, renewable energy, transportation, the food industry, logistics and other sectors. In return, Azerbaijan invested around $400 million dollars in UAE markets across different spheres. We hope and believe that, in coming years, we will achieve a notable enhancement in the volume of mutual investments.
The UAE is Azerbaijan’s largest trading partner in the Gulf Cooperation Council, accounting for 76 per cent of Azerbaijan’s trade with GCC countries. Could you comment on the opportunities and outlook for trade and cooperation between Azerbaijan and the UAE?
Mutual trade is one of the key areas of cooperation between our countries and the UAE has been Azerbaijan’s largest trade partner in the GCC region for a long period of time. According to our official statistics, trade turnover between Azerbaijan and the UAE amounted to more than $50 million in 2021, an increase of 25 per cent when compared to 2020.
In this regard, we have to emphasise the effective role of the Azerbaijan-UAE Joint Intergovernmental Economic Commission in the development of trade partnerships. In 2021, the UAE hosted the 8th session of this commission, which was chaired by the Economy Ministers of both countries. In addition to the main traditional spheres, the session also focused on new economic sectors, such as space, innovation, renewable energy, digital transformation, the fourth industrial revolution and so on.
I have to highlight the existence of a broad range of prospective and promising opportunities to increase our trade exchange. Both sides are working on joint practical steps to facilitate and enhance trade exchange, and to create new investment opportunities for businesses in our countries. We have solid legal base for this and have signed agreements on the elimination of double taxation and the mutual protection of investments.
As a result of our joint endeavours, today we are happy to witness dynamic development in our economic, trade and investment cooperation. A key illustration of this was the groundbreaking ceremony held in Baku on March 15 this year for the 230MW Garadagh Solar Power Plant, which will be built by the UAE’s Masdar. The plant is expected to start commercial operations in 2023 and, with an investment value of more than $225 million, it will help to generate half a billion kilowatt hours of electricity annually and will meet the needs of more than 110,000 houses.
What is the vision of the country’s leadership for the development of Azerbaijan in the 21st century?
Azerbaijan restored its independence in 1991. Unfortunately, in the first years of independence, we faced very critical challenges, such as economic recession, the occupation of territories, internal chaos and so on. But under the leadership of our national leader and the architect of modern Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev, and the current President Ilham Aliyev, we overcame these challenges. Azerbaijan gained economic advantages and formed socio-political and socio-economic foundations. As a locomotive of the regional economy, Azerbaijan became a reliable partner in the region and the world. These achievements led us into a historic victory that resulted in the liberation of our lands from occupation and the restoration of our territorial integrity in 2020.
At present, we are determined to maximise the use of our existing ample economic potential and opportunities to the benefit of our nation. In this respect, I have to cite the order signed by President Ilham Aliyev on February 2, 2021: “Azerbaijan 2030: National Priorities for Socio-Economic Development”. Out of the many priorities in the order, I would like to mention some key ones: first, a steadily growing, competitive economy; second, a dynamic, inclusive society based on social justice; third, areas of modern innovation and competitive human capital; fourth, the great return to the territories liberated from occupation; and fifth, a clean environment and a country of ‘green growth’. These national priorities are very important for the implementation of our commitments arising from the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals for 2030.
How attractive is Azerbaijan as a destination to invest and do business in?
Azerbaijan’s economic indicators are very positive and our large-scale economic reforms are progressing well. Azerbaijan has become a very attractive destination for investors around the globe. As a result, around $280 billion has been invested in the Azerbaijani economy, half of which is foreign investment. Azerbaijan’s external debt accounts for only about 17 per cent of its gross domestic product and, by the end of 2030, that will decrease to 10 per cent. In addition, the strategic foreign exchange reserves of our country exceed our state’s external debt by over six times.
Based on this, leading international organisations rank our activities in optimising our business environment highly. Azerbaijan is placed 28th out of 190 countries in the World Bank’s most recent Doing Business survey, according to which, Azerbaijan is one of the top 20 most reforming countries in this area.
Under Azerbaijani law, foreign investments enjoy complete and unreserved legal protection. The government has established a number of industrial parks and has offered tax incentives, exemptions and privileges for their residents, alongside different infrastructure opportunities. In this regard, we should note the establishment of Alat Free Economic Zone (AFEZ). There is no restriction on foreign ownership in AFEZ, no taxes on businesses in the zone and there are additional benefits.
At present, Azerbaijan is planning to completely recover the territories liberated from Armenian occupation. We intend to transform the liberated territories into areas of high-tech development. One of the main goals is to provide energy security to the liberated territories and to create a Green Energy Zone. The reconstruction process has started, and the cities and villages in the liberated territories will be re-established based on the smart-city and smart-village concepts. Azerbaijan has established a favourable climate for investment in those territories, particularly for companies from friendly countries.
The capital of Azerbaijan, the oil-rich city of Baku, has developed dynamically as a hub of trade, tourism, culture, sport, technology, investment and exchange, providing a vital link in the passage of goods and people between the East and the West, the North and the South. As a result, some people now compare Baku with Dubai, which is described as “one of the world’s great economic miracles”, and are calling Baku “the Dubai of the Caucasus”.
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