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Fatima Latifova

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Germany is one of the most important political and economic partners of Azerbaijan in Europe. Azerbaijan attaches great importance to the development of relations with this country. The results of the first official visit of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev to Germany in 2004 once again confirmed the greater potential for cooperation between the two countries. A number of agreements signed within the framework of the visit opened great opportunities in terms of economic cooperation.

For example, the supply of Azerbaijani oil to Germany is one of the main pillars of the total trade volume. Thus, in 2022, Germany entered the list of 10 main importers of Azerbaijani oil. It is worth noting that there are currently 239 registered German companies in Azerbaijan. Approximately 170 of those organizations operating in the fields of energy, industry, agriculture, transport, communication, construction, banking, insurance, trade and service, are members of the Azerbaijan-Germany Chamber of Commerce.

Germany is also a reliable partner within the framework of the Western Platforms and the host country for the negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Thus, the Munich Security Conference held in Germany is the leading international conference on security policy. Conferences are traditionally held in February of each year. At the conference, heads of state, foreign ministers, defense ministers, government officials, military leaders, members of parliament, heads of international and non-governmental organizations, academicians, and experts gather from all over the world.

In 2020, when Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and sovereignty were ensured, President Ilham Aliyev participated in this conference and demonstrated that Azerbaijan attaches importance to security, including the issues on the world's agenda. During the meeting, Ilham Aliyev emphasized that Garabagh is the eternal land of Azerbaijan, based on historical facts. In terms of knowledge of foreign languages, knowledge of history, and political argumentation, the president of Azerbaijan was significantly different from his opponent in the best sense of the word. President Ilham Aliyev held a bilateral meeting with Olaf Scholtz within the framework of the conference and conducted very effective negotiations on advancing the peace agenda between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The cooperation between Germany and Azerbaijan is developing in the political and economic spheres, as well as on the topic of Climate Change.

Recall that Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, will host the 2024 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 29) for the first time in the region from November 11–22, 2024. The decision was made at the plenary session of COP28 on December 11. Azerbaijan successfully participated in the COP28 held in Abu Dhabi last year.

Azerbaijan will take the opportunity to bring heads of state and governments, civil society organisations, business, and international institutions together in the South Caucasus to discuss climate change, measures to accelerate the implementation of the Paris Agreement, and focus on long-term climate strategies and goals.

COP29 and other global events that Azerbaijan has hosted and will hold show that this country's reputation in the world has increased to a great extent. As President Ilham Aliyev noted at the swearing-in ceremony, Azerbaijan is no longer a state operating at the local level, but is recognized as a country that promotes active partnership in various regions of the world and as a reliable partner, that actively participates in solving global problems in the world, and makes practical contributions to it.

As the issue of climate change is one of the topics on Germany's agenda, cooperation between Azerbaijan and Germany in the field of COP29 was also expected. Thus, COP29 is a global event dedicated to solving the world's most important problem. The climate dialogue has been held under the auspices of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 2022, and it has become particularly important to the topic of negotiations on the fight against climate change.

The Petersberg Climate Dialogue is a large-scale event that will set clear directions for COP29, and the official invitation of Baku to the event as this year's host of COP29 testifies to the comprehensive development of Azerbaijan as well as the strength of its relations with Germany.

It is worth noting that Azerbaijan confirmed its commitment to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases by 35 percent by 2030 and increase this target by 40 percent by 2050. Fulfilling the commitments under the Paris Agreement adopted in 2015 and actively working in this regard are priority issues for the government of Azerbaijan.

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