Extraordinary meeting of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry on “New era of socio-economic development of Azerbaijan”

An extraordinary meeting of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TCCI) was held on November 2 with the organizational support of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) Organizations of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov, President of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) Mustafa Rifat, Secretary General of the Turkic Council Baghdad Amreyev, President of the National Confederation of Entrepreneurs (Employers) Organizations of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mammad Musayev, Chairman of the Board of the National Chamber of Entrepreneurs of the Republic of Kazakhstan “Atameken” Ablay Myrzakhmetov, Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Uzbekistan Adkham Ikramov, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Kyrgyz Republic Marat Sharshekeyev and other officials attended the event.

In his introductory speech, President of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry and TOBB Mustafa Rifat said that the Azerbaijani Army under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev is liberating Azerbaijani lands as a result of successful counter-offensive operations. “We are ready to support Azerbaijan in all areas and are proud of Azerbaijan’s struggle for the liberation of lands,” Hisarciklioglu said. According to him, Turkey has invested $ 20 billion in Turkic-speaking countries, and successful joint projects will be launched in the near future.

Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov first expressed his condolences over the victims of the earthquake in the Aegean region of Turkey and wished the injured a speedy recovery. The Minister also wished God’s mercy and healing to the martyrs who died heroically in the battles for the liberation of Azerbaijani lands.

Continuing his speech, the Minister said that despite Azerbaijan’s efforts to achieve sustainable development in the region and its significant achievements, Armenia’s aggressive policy against our country creates serious obstacles to expanding economic cooperation and limits the full use of economic potential. Participants were informed about Armenia’s next provocations against Azerbaijan on September 27 this year, terrorist and war crimes committed by firing on innocent civilians and civilian objects with artillery and missile systems, and attempts to damage pipelines that play an important role in Europe’s energy security.

In the face of successful counter-offensive operations by the victorious Azerbaijani Army, the enemy retreated rapidly, violating the norms and principles of international law, the Geneva Conventions, UN Security Council resolutions, and deliberately targeting Azerbaijani civilians. Intensive shelling of densely populated areas continues. “I must say that the operations carried out by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces to restore the territorial integrity of our country and ensure the security of the civilian population are in full compliance with the norms and principles of international law. Today, Azerbaijan conducts operations on its territory, not on the territory of any state, and targets only legitimate military facilities.

The Minister noted that Azerbaijan, a member of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is actively involved in regional connectivity projects such as East-West, North-South and North-West transport corridors, and has become one of the most important and reliable transport and logistics centers in Eurasia. The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway and the Baku International Sea Trade Port with a capacity of 25 million tons operate. According to the “Global Competitiveness Index” published by the World Economic Forum for 2019, Azerbaijan ranks 11th among 141 countries in terms of efficiency of railway services, 12th in terms of air transport services, 25th in terms of seaport services, and 27th in terms of the quality of road infrastructure.

In order to stimulate investment, the state has created logistics centers and industrial zones that create opportunities for operation on preferential terms. In Azerbaijan, foreign investment is treated on an equal footing with local investment, and investment activities are guaranteed by the state. The Minister said that a Unified Action Plan has been prepared for the liberated territories and Azerbaijan is ready to cooperate with the member countries of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry in this area.

Secretary General of the Turkic Council Baghdad Amreyev said that important work had been done to expand cooperation between TCCI member countries. Business forums have been held in member states to build contacts between businessmen from the private sector, and successes have been achieved in opening trading houses. Amreyev said the Turkic Council would also use its opportunities to increase mutual investment between the two countries. “The Turkic business community has stated its support for Azerbaijan in the case of Nagorno-Karabakh,” he said.

Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Ramiz Hasanov said that Armenia used cluster bombs against civilians in regions far from the war zone, which is a war crime. During the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, Armenia plundered our wealth and caused great damage to the state and civilian population. “Work has already begun on the reconstruction of our liberated territories, and we are pleased with the participation of friendly and brotherly Turkic-speaking countries in our future activities in this direction,” Hasanov said.

President of the Confederation of Entrepreneurs of Azerbaijan Mammad Musayev said that President Ilham Aliyev had implemented large-scale economic reforms in Azerbaijan in recent years. According to him, the main purpose of these reforms is to diversify the country’s economy, create new jobs, improve the welfare of the population, strengthen the economic and military potential of our country.

It was noted that the Azerbaijani state is improving the structure of its economy and increasing the investment climate. Adequate steps have been taken in Azerbaijan to combat the coronavirus. In order to reduce the impact of the pandemic on the economy, the state provides great support to economic entities affected by the pandemic. Musayev stressed that the existing economic instruments for the protection of Azerbaijan’s foreign exchange reserves and macroeconomic stability have created a stable basis for the economic development of our country. All this creates favorable conditions for mutual investment of the member states of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Musayev said the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a new and powerful mechanism for expanding trade and investment cooperation between Turkic-speaking countries, is aimed at expanding the geography of economic relations and reliable partnership opportunities for investment, as well as increasing trade turnover between the private sectors. Over the past year, important steps have been taken to establish the Chamber’s staff, establish internal joint chambers, increase the geography of business forums and dialogue platforms, and these steps create a basis for increasing trade turnover between Turkic-speaking countries. “We would like the member states of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry to re-evaluate new investment opportunities and join joint activities in Azerbaijan. We would be very pleased if our brothers work here, “said the ASK President.

At the end of the event, a statement was adopted at a special meeting of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry on “A new era of socio-economic development of Azerbaijan.”

The event ended on behalf of the Turkic Chamber of Commerce and Industry with the sending of humanitarian aid to the civilian population living in the frontline of Azerbaijan, affected by the Armenian military aggression.