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Deputy FM of Azerbaijan to Asharq Al-Awsat: Relentless Efforts for Comprehensive Cooperation with Saudi Arabia

Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yalchin Rafiyev (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yalchin Rafiyev (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Deputy FM of Azerbaijan to Asharq Al-Awsat: Relentless Efforts for Comprehensive Cooperation with Saudi Arabia

Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yalchin Rafiyev (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yalchin Rafiyev (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yalchin Rafiyev stressed Saudi Arabia’s pivotal role in enhancing security and stability in the region, and pushing towards activating Arab-Islamic joint action mechanisms to stop the war on Gaza.

On Saudi-Azerbaijani relations, Rafiyev said: “Bilateral relations are strong and well-established. We support each other within international organizations and in many initiatives,” pointing to his country’s backing of the Kingdom’s nomination to host Expo 2030 and its initiative to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat, the Azerbaijani minister noted that during his recent visit to Riyadh, he discussed with his Saudi counterpart, Al-Waleed bin Abdul Karim Al-Khereiji, new areas of cooperation and the means to push bilateral relations towards new horizons.

“We presented our views on various bilateral, regional and global issues, and discussed opportunities for economic and humanitarian cooperation,” he stated.

According to Rafiyev, the volume of trade exchange between Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan does not reflect the level of bilateral relationship.

“We are talking about $26 million annually in trade volume, which is of course at the desired level, but in the past few years, investment cooperation has been steadily increasing,” he remarked.

Rafiyev added that Saudi ACWA Power was investing in the wind energy sector in Azerbaijan in 2025, pointing to new projects that would be undertaken by the company in the future.

“Our two governments have concluded agreements for cooperation in the field of energy. This gives us hope that there will be more investment projects coming in the near future,” he said, revealing a visit by the Azerbaijani Foreign minister to Saudi Arabia, early next year, to discuss ways to expand economic cooperation.

The deputy minister of Foreign Affairs said that tourism cooperation with Saudi Arabia has been growing very steadily throughout the past ten months.

“We received about 70,000 Saudi tourists last year, and the volume of Saudi tourists coming to our country demonstrated the closeness of our cultures, our similarities, and the commonality of our traditions,” he underlined.

Rafiyev continued: “We look forward to strengthening cooperation in the field of green energy, green economy, and smart technology in our economic and agricultural systems for the benefit of the entire world.”

Asked by Asharq Al-Awsat on Azerbaijan’s stance on the Gaza war, the deputy minister underlined the need to immediately stop the hostilities and the killing of civilians.

He added: “Azerbaijan’s position on this issue is clear. It calls for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, and the need to stop the ongoing hostilities immediately.”

He also stressed that negotiations should be resumed in order to find a long-term solution to the conflict.

Regarding the latest developments in the Karabakh file, Rafiyev said that Azerbaijan regained its “sovereign territorial integrity, over its entire territory, last September.”

He continued: “We took measures to combat riots and terrorism in the area... Our priority is to normalize our relationship with Armenia to build a peaceful future for our region. We offered peace to Armenia, and the final draft was submitted in September, awaiting reactions from the Armenian side.”

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FAO Official: Gulf States Shielded Themselves from Major Shocks

David Laborde, Director of the Agrifood Economics Division at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
David Laborde, Director of the Agrifood Economics Division at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
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FAO Official: Gulf States Shielded Themselves from Major Shocks

David Laborde, Director of the Agrifood Economics Division at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
David Laborde, Director of the Agrifood Economics Division at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

David Laborde, Director of the Agrifood Economics Division at the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told Asharq al-Awsat that global hunger increased sharply during the coronavirus pandemic, noting that the GCC countries were able to shield themselves from major shocks affecting food security.
Laborde added that global hunger affected over 152 million people, with no improvement in the past two years.
Today, 733 million people suffer from chronic hunger, and 2.3 billion face food insecurity, according to the UN annual report on “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World.”

Laborde explained that the global economic crisis has worsened food insecurity, keeping hunger levels high.
Alongside this, climate shocks and conflicts are major causes of hunger. He also pointed out that food insecurity is closely tied to inequality, and the economic crisis, rising living costs, and high interest rates are deepening existing inequalities both within and between countries.
On whether economic diversification in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is boosting food security, Laborde said: “A move towards a more diversified economy and enhancing the ability to rely on various sources of food supplies are key drivers of food security resilience and stability.”
“GCC countries have managed to shield themselves from major shocks, primarily due to their high income levels and ability to cover import costs without difficulty,” he explained.
Regarding the FAO’s outlook on reducing global hunger, Laborde insisted that ending hunger will require a significant increase in funding.
When asked for suggestions on how governments could enhance food security, Laborde said: “Despite global figures remaining stable, improvements are seen in Asia and Latin America, showing that the right policies and conditions can reduce numbers.”
“Hunger is not inevitable. Investing in social safety nets to protect the poor, along with making structural changes to food systems to be more environmentally friendly, resilient, and equitable, is the right path forward,” emphasized Laborde.
The annual State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, published on Wednesday, said about 733 million people faced hunger in 2023 – one in 11 people globally and one in five in Africa.
Hunger and food insecurity present critical challenges affecting millions globally.
The annual report, released this year during the G20 Global Alliance for Hunger and Poverty Task Force ministerial meeting in Brazil, warns that the world is significantly lagging in achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2—ending hunger by 2030.
It highlights that global progress has regressed by 15 years, with malnutrition levels comparable to those seen in 2008-2009.
Despite some progress in areas like stunting and exclusive breastfeeding, a troubling number of people still face food insecurity and malnutrition, with global hunger levels rising.