“Geostrategic and political relations between Azerbaijan and Pakistan are at a high level. However, we need to do more to develop cooperation in some areas.”
This was stated by Hikmet Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan – Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration, in an interview with Pakistan’s “PakTVGlobal” television channel within the framework of the 4th Shusha Global Media Forum.
Main goals of the Shusha Global Media Forum
Hikmet Hajiyev first spoke about the goals of the 4th Shusha Global Media Forum: “The initiative to hold the Shusha Global Media Forum was put forward by President Ilham Aliyev four years ago. The goal here was to restore Shusha’s past cultural and intellectual role in the South Caucasus and beyond the region. Scientists, academics, journalists, philosophers, and poets gather in Shusha to work on various intellectual ideas and bring back the former spirit of Shusha.
The second reason is that Azerbaijan, like brotherly Pakistan, is subjected to media attacks on the global stage. One of the functions of the Shusha Forum is to overcome these and convey the truth. This happened after the liberation of Azerbaijan’s occupied territories. We speak openly with the world. This is the President’s direct communication with international media. This initiative has yielded very effective results. There is no question limit here. Any journalist can ask the question they deem appropriate. At this year’s forum, the President of Azerbaijan answered questions from all parts of the world.
Furthermore, the Shusha Forum is also an intellectual dialogue. Media is changing dynamically. Artificial intelligence, social networks, and the entire media ecosystem are changing. We all face disinformation. Therefore, we must learn from each other and share our experiences. We must put forward proposals. This is also one of the goals of the Shusha Forum.”
President Ilham Aliyev’s model of open dialogue and strategic communication
According to Hikmet Hajiyev, President Ilham Aliyev demonstrated transparency and strategic communication at the Shusha Global Media Forum: “There were no restrictions or censorship there. Everyone was free to ask any question they wanted. This was Azerbaijan’s strategic communication, and I am proud to be an assistant to the President. We learn something from his wisdom daily. The President’s approach to the media is one of these. The head of state demonstrates the same spirit in the economy, foreign policy, and social and military spheres. The reality is that Azerbaijan is a strong state and has a strong leader. The President of Azerbaijan answering questions at the last forum was not just communication; it was a real dialogue with international media.”
Azerbaijan-Pakistan strategic partnership and brotherly relations
The President’s assistant also touched upon Azerbaijan-Pakistan relations and expressed satisfaction with the level of bilateral ties: “There are brotherly relations between Pakistan and Azerbaijan, and we have a strategic partnership. I have also had the honor of witnessing the friendship and deep respect between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Field Marshal Asim Munir, and President Ilham Aliyev. When Azerbaijani territories were under occupation, brotherly Pakistan demonstrated support for Azerbaijan. Pakistan did not establish diplomatic relations with the occupying country and recognized Armenia as an aggressor state. This has remained in the memory of not only the Azerbaijani state but also its people, and we will always remember and highly appreciate it.
At the same time, we rejoice in Pakistan’s successes. Recently, in the military conflict between the US and Iran in the Gulf region, Pakistan showed strategic patience and wisdom, creating a mediation platform for the resolution of this conflict, ensuring the signing of a memorandum of understanding and the end of the conflict. Pakistan demonstrated strong state qualities and strategic foresight here. Pakistan’s important geostrategic significance in global issues has emerged. As your brothers, we are very happy about this. We trust the skills of our Pakistani brothers. The state of Pakistan strives to ensure peace, and this stems from their sincere feelings to do a good job regarding global and regional peace. This conflict has global impacts. Without Pakistan’s efforts, the conflict could have gone beyond regional borders, and new elements could have been added to the escalation. Pakistan’s diplomacy should be appreciated for this. We believe that Pakistan’s efforts will yield positive results. At the same time, we must know that the mediator carries messages, but the final decision is made by the parties.”
Potential for the development of business relations
Hikmet Hajiyev noted that relations between Azerbaijan and Pakistan at the political and geostrategic levels are excellent and demonstrate the will of both countries, but there is still work to be done: “The leadership of our countries is working hard to form institutionalized cooperation between Azerbaijan and Pakistan. But of course, we must do more – in economic-trade, humanitarian-cultural relations, and relations between peoples. Here we can say with certainty that we must do more. There should be more contact between Azerbaijani and Pakistani businessmen. Both countries have great economic potential and opportunities. But sometimes the lack of information affects our trade and economic relations. Let me give you an example. Due to the lack of sufficient information and the absence of institutionalized business mechanisms, Azerbaijan was importing Pakistani rice from a third country. After this issue was brought to the attention of the Azerbaijani government, the necessary measures were taken. Pakistani rice was exempted from customs duties. This further increased the competitiveness of Pakistani rice in the Azerbaijani market. This is just one example of the progress we can achieve in all areas. We must better inform businessmen.”
The President’s assistant emphasized that tourism relations are developing dynamically: “We are very pleased with this. Currently, the number of direct flights between Azerbaijan and Pakistan has increased. This is a good sign. But more work should be done in cultural and other fields. Here, the burden also falls on media representatives. There should be more cooperation between Azerbaijani and Pakistani media. We must inform our societies more about each other’s culture and business opportunities. My brother, the Minister of Information of Pakistan, supports this issue and has done a lot for it. Pakistan has well-developed English-language journalism. We are also working on the development of this field in Azerbaijan, and I think we can benefit from Pakistan’s experience in this matter. I am pleased to see that cooperation is developing within the framework of the memorandum signed between “Anewz” and your “PakTvGlobal” channel. We can say that there is no limit to the development of cooperation between Azerbaijan and Pakistan.”