horizons hr-kura-aras

Azerbaijan ready to further contribute to Afghan stability, FM says

ISTANBUL - From online dispatches | 11/4/2010 12:00:00 AM |

Azerbaijan is ready to further contribute to stability in Afghanistan, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said Wednesday.

Azerbaijan is ready to further contribute to stability in Afghanistan, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov said Wednesday at an international conference on Afghanistan in Istanbul.

Mammadyarov spoke about the work being undertaken by Azerbaijan to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan at the Fourth Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan, and said Azerbaijan had doubled the number of servicemen it sent to Afghanistan in 2009, Azerbaijan’s Trend News Agency reported.

"Azerbaijan has also made a contribution to the non-military sector," he said.

Two doctors and two engineers from Azerbaijan were sent to the Kabul Regional Command to provide training sessions for Afghans, and 10,500 booklets have been prepared by Azerbaijan’s National Agency for Mine Action, or ANAMA, at the request of Afghanistan's Education Ministry.

The booklets will soon be delivered to the Parvan region, Azerbaijan’s foreign minister said.

Mammadyarov said Azerbaijan has expressed a willingness to continue educational courses and training courses for Afghans in other fields if necessary. Azerbaijan will also consider contributing to the education of Afghan students at Azerbaijani universities.

Azerbaijan is a very important transit place because of its geographic location and transport infrastructure, and it makes large contributions to commercial shipments to Afghanistan, said Mammadyarov, adding that the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway would intensify and regulate quick and secure cargo transportation. A sea port currently under construction is also expected to increase the number of shipments to Afghanistan.

During his visit, Mammadyarov also met with his Turkish counterpart, Ahmet Davutoğlu, to exchange views on regional issues and bilateral relations.