RIYADH, 15 February 2004 — The second session of the Saudi-Azerbaijani Joint Commission for Economic, Commercial and Technical Cooperation began here yesterday under the co-chairmanship of Minister of Commerce Dr. Hashim Yamani and Azerbaijan’s First Deputy Premier Yaqub Ayyoubov.
Addressing the inaugural session, Dr. Yamani stressed the importance of continuing Saudi-Azerbaijani cooperation, pointing out to the existing good relations between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.
Ayyoubov and the accompanying delegation arrived here yesterday. He was welcomed at King Khaled International Airport by Dr. Yamani and other senior officials.
Dr. Yamani urged businessmen to contribute positively to increasing trade between the two to the benefit of the both countries. He said that the Saudi-Azerbaijani joint commission had urged the relevant authorities in the Kingdom and Azerbaijan to accelerate completion of the agreements of dual-taxation and the encouragement and protection of investment projects.
“These two agreements will have a positive impact on bilateral economic relations’, he said.
The joint commission underscored the importance of coordination of efforts in the petroleum sector by forming a joint team of experts. “The cultural center due to be established by the Kingdom in Bako will be viewed as one of the achievements of the joint commission”, he added.
The joint commission includes sub-committees of commercial and economic cooperation; cooperation in Islamic, cultural and sports affairs; technical cooperation, and businessmen.
Ayyoubov urged the Saudi businessmen to invest their capital in Azerbaijan saying that the Azerbaijani government would remove all the obstacles that might impede foreign investments in the country.
He pointed out that so far, the volume of foreign investments in Azerbaijan exceeded $16 billion.
Minister of Finance Dr. Ibrahim Al-Assaf also met with Ayyoubov where aspects of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries and prospects of setting up joint investment projects were reviewed.
