Phnom penh: Cambodia and Azerbaijan have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening parliamentary diplomacy and expanding economic cooperation, while emphasizing the importance of international law and multilateralism amid growing global uncertainty. The commitment was made in a meeting held at the National Assembly Palace between Samdech Maha Rathsapheathika Thipadei Khuon Sudary, President of the National Assembly of Cambodia, and visiting H.E. Elchin Amirbayov, Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan on Special Assignments.
According to Agence Kampuchea Presse, Samdech Khuon Sudary highlighted that the visit by H.E. Amirbayov reflected the continued growth of bilateral relations since Cambodia and Azerbaijan established diplomatic ties in 1995. She noted that despite geographical distance, the friendship and cooperation between the two nations continue to strengthen through active parliamentary and governmental engagement. Samdech expressed confidence that the visit would further deepen bilateral ties and contribute to regional and global peace, stability, and prosperity.
Samdech Khuon Sudary emphasized the challenges facing smaller nations in an increasingly fragile geopolitical environment, stressing the importance of safeguarding international law and strengthening multilateral cooperation. She praised Azerbaijan's active role in promoting the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), underscoring the importance of solidarity among small and middle-power countries in preserving a fair and inclusive international order.
On regional issues, Samdech reaffirmed Cambodia's commitment to resolving disputes peacefully through dialogue and international law while maintaining ASEAN centrality. She also briefed the Azerbaijani side on Cambodia's position regarding Thailand's unilateral cancellation of the MOU 2001, emphasizing Cambodia's commitment to peaceful solutions based on existing treaties and international legal principles.
H.E. Amirbayov conveyed greetings from Azerbaijani President H.E. Ilham Aliyev and Speaker of the Milli Majlis H.E. Sahiba Gafarova. He expressed satisfaction with the quality of political dialogue and growing parliamentary cooperation, thanking Cambodia for supporting Azerbaijan's engagement with ASEAN parliamentary mechanisms and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA).
The discussions also touched on opportunities to expand cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, agriculture, and energy, citing the complementary strengths of Azerbaijan's strong energy capabilities and Cambodia's significant agricultural potential. H.E. Amirbayov looked forward to an official visit by Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet, Prime Minister of Cambodia, to Azerbaijan in October, seeing it as a potential milestone in bilateral relations.
Both sides expressed satisfaction with the growing momentum of parliamentary diplomacy and pledged to further strengthen political dialogue and practical cooperation for mutual benefit and broader regional stability.