China and Azerbaijan agree on a visa-free regime during Aliyev’s visit to Beijing

On Wednesday, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping during a state visit to China that began the previous day. During the visit, the two leaders agreed to begin a bilateral visa-free regime among other new forms of cooperation, but there were no specifics provided about the details of the new regime.

Aliyev arrived in Beijing to significant fanfare and pageantry from his Chinese hosts. He also brought his family, including his grandchildren, on the trip.

On the second day of Aliyev’s visit, the two leaders signed an 18-point agreement on the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

Among the points of the agreement was the affirmation that Azerbaijan stands by the ‘One China Policy’.

According to the joint statement, the Azerbaijani government reiterated ‘that there is only one China in the world, that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, and that the government of [Beijing] is the sole legitimate government representing the whole of China’.

Azerbaijan ‘firmly opposes any form of Taiwan independence and supports the Chinese government in realising the reunification of the country’.

Aliyev and Xi also agreed to enhance the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative with Azerbaijan’s national development strategies — the 'Revival of the Silk Road' and the 2030 Socio-Economic Development Strategy.

The joint statement outlined increased cooperation in a number of areas, including petrochemicals, metallurgy, the textile industry, pharmaceuticals, and machine-building equipment, as well as ‘improving favorable conditions for road transport between Azerbaijan and China’. It was unclear which route the language pertained to.

The sides agreed to continue mutual student exchanges through various channels, including supporting the development of Confucius Institutes in Azerbaijan and promoting the teaching of the Azerbaijani and Chinese languages in educational institutions.

Prior to his visit to Beijing, Aliyev gave a lengthy interview to Xinhua, China’s state news agency, discussing ties between Azerbaijan and China.

During the interview, Aliyev praised the trade volume between his country and China, and said that Azerbaijan is the ‘second country after China to have invested the most’ in the Belt and Road initiative.

The official visit to Beijing was also preceded by the Minister of the International Department of the Chinese Communist Party Liu Jianchao’s visit to Azerbaijan. Liu’s visit was followed by reports, both by Russian state news agency Sputnik and Azerbaijani pro-government media, that the Chinese minister said that Chinese companies would participate in the construction of the ‘Zangezur corridor’ — a Baku demand for control of a strip of land through Armenia to link mainland Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan.

China’s Charge d’Affaires to Armenia, Chen Ming, refuted the reports to Armenian media on the same day.

Aliyev praises ties with China ahead of visit to Beijing

In an interview with Chinese media, the Azerbaijani president praised trade and investment ties between his country and China.

OC MediaYousef Bardouka