BAKU, Azerbaijan - President Ilham Aliyev said Azerbaijan would continue supporting the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations during separate meetings in Baku on Oct. 26 with senior UN officials focused on intercultural dialogue and counterterrorism.
Aliyev received Miguel Ángel Moratinos, the UN under-secretary-general and high representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, who also serves as the UN special envoy to combat Islamophobia.
Moratinos praised Azerbaijan’s role in promoting intercultural and interreligious dialogue and thanked the country for its voluntary financial contributions to the alliance, according to an official statement from the Azerbaijani presidency.
He also welcomed Azerbaijan’s international conferences on combating Islamophobia and said the alliance supported those efforts.
Aliyev described cooperation between Azerbaijan and the UN body as longstanding and successful. He said Baku would continue backing the alliance’s work and emphasized the importance of the World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue as a venue for discussing global challenges and advancing mutual understanding.
Counterterrorism Cooperation
In a separate meeting the same day, Aliyev received Alexander Zuev, acting UN under-secretary-general for counterterrorism.
The two sides discussed Azerbaijan’s cooperation with the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism, while the UN official praised the country’s contribution to international efforts against terrorism, according to a second presidential statement.
They also said the upcoming World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue in Baku would provide an opportunity to address international issues and noted the forum’s growing profile.
Source: Vesti Baku