6th World Intercultural Dialogue Forum Held in Azerbaijan

The 6th World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue, held in the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku, began with an official opening ceremony. Guests from various countries around the world, Azerbaijani state and government officials, members of parliament, representatives of religious communities, and diplomatic representatives attended the opening ceremony held at the Heydar Aliyev Center.

Speech by President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev

In his speech at the opening ceremony, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev emphasized Azerbaijan’s efforts for peace, stating that Azerbaijan took the initiative to start peace agreement negotiations with Armenia. Aliyev mentioned that the negotiations between the two countries are being conducted by Azerbaijan and progress towards peace is being made positively.

Aliyev said, ‘Despite the political attacks we have faced from Armenia’s external supporters, we continued to pursue the peace proposal. I can say that the process of delineating and determining borders has begun. We have successfully conducted this process without any intermediaries,’ he said.

Criticizing countries trying to intervene in the peace process with Armenia, Aliyev stated that they are making efforts to establish peace in South Caucasus and emphasized that normalization in the region can only be achieved between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Azerbaijan’s International Role

Furthermore, President Aliyev highlighted Azerbaijan’s role as a bridge in the region, mentioning the United Nations Climate Summit (COP29) that the country will host in November, thanks to its geographical location and interaction with European institutions.