Chairman of Azerbaijan’s State Committee on Work with the Diaspora Fuad Muradov met with Kürşad Zorlu, Deputy Chairman of Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), member of parliament and Chairman of the General Directorate for Relations with Turkic States, as well as Temel Akyürek, deputy chairman of the institution, and Cengiz Aygör, head of the Azerbaijan representation of the International Union of Democrats.
Providing information about the committee’s projects carried out internationally, Muradov emphasized that Azerbaijan-Türkiye relations are based on historical roots, mutual trust and strong friendship. It was noted that the determination, political will, resolve and mutual efforts of the leaders of the two countries, Ilham Aliyev and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, have played an important role in elevating relations between Azerbaijan and Türkiye to the level of strategic partnership. As a result of this political will, relations between the two brotherly countries have developed across all areas, including diaspora activities, and have become increasingly strong and enduring.
It was noted that important projects are being implemented to communicate the realities of Azerbaijan to the world, promote national and cultural values, bring Azerbaijanis living abroad together and coordinate the activities of the Azerbaijani diaspora. In this context, attention was drawn to the fact that there are currently 33 Azerbaijani Houses in 21 countries around the world. Several of these houses are located in Türkiye and contribute to bringing Azerbaijanis living there together on a common platform, preserving and promoting national and cultural heritage, and further strengthening Azerbaijan-Türkiye brotherhood.
In his remarks, Kürşad Zorlu spoke about the importance of further expanding cooperation among Turkic-speaking states and increasing joint initiatives. He emphasized that opportunities created by modern technologies are important for bringing Azerbaijanis living abroad together more quickly and effectively and coordinating them through unified digital platforms. He noted that targeted use of digital opportunities could not only accelerate information exchange among diaspora organizations, but also create conditions for closer cooperation among Azerbaijanis living in different countries around common goals. He said he highly appreciated the projects and programs implemented by the State Committee on Work with the Diaspora in this area.
The meeting continued with a productive exchange of views, during which proposals for future cooperation were put forward and practical opportunities for cooperation were considered.