MOSCOW, July 17. /TASS/. Russia is ready to facilitate the establishment of transport and economic links between Baku and Yerevan, as well as the resolution of humanitarian issues, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a press conference following talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.
"Russia consistently supports the efforts of Azerbaijan and Armenia aimed at the full and comprehensive normalization of relations based on the set of trilateral agreements reached at the highest level in 2020 and 2022. As before, we stand ready to assist both Baku and Yerevan in unblocking transport and economic links and addressing humanitarian issues," he said.
During the talks with Bayramov, note was taken of statements by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev that "Russian-Azerbaijani relations have been fully normalized, with past difficulties left behind," Lavrov said. "We acknowledged a mutual understanding of this reality and agreed to take steps to bridge the gap that had developed in our relations over the past few months," he stressed.
At the meeting, the ministers welcomed the dynamic development of intergovernmental ties, primarily at the level of the heads of government, and the active inter-parliamentary dialogue, Lavrov noted, adding that there is also an active foreign policy dialogue between the two countries at all levels.
The foreign ministers also discussed trade and economic cooperation. "We noted the mutual interest in further increasing trade turnover. Last year bilateral trade reached nearly $5 bln. Russia remains one of Azerbaijan’s leading economic partners, and there is significant potential to increase our trade turnover and the flow of direct investments," Lavrov said, adding that Russian investments in Azerbaijan amount to almost $11 bln.
Special attention was paid to resuming full-scale cooperation in the cultural, humanitarian, and educational areas at the meeting, he said. "We discussed pressing issues on the regional and international agenda in detail. We emphasized the importance of our interaction as a factor in ensuring stability in the South Caucasus and the Caspian region," the minister concluded.