The 14th plenary session of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) kicked off here on Thursday.
The session under the theme “Fostering regional cooperation for sustainable development in Asia” brought together delegations from about 40 countries, as well as parliamentary speakers from nearly 10 nations.
The state anthem of the Republic of Azerbaijan was performed.
Addressing the event, APA Secretary General Mohammad Reza Majidi thanked Azerbaijan`s Milli Majlis for stunning organization of the session and for hospitality. He noted that Azerbaijan would take over the Chairmanship of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly from Türkiye for the next two years. The Secretary-General expressed his confidence that under Azerbaijan`s chairmanship, the Asian Parliamentary Assembly would make progress in its upcoming activities.
Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye and acting Chairman of APA Numan Kurtulmus expressed his hope that the 14th session would be successfully held and contribute into further development of solidarity between the Asian states.
Addressing the event, Speaker of Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova underscored the Turkish Grand National Assembly`s triumphant chairmanship in the organization. She emphasized that the work done over the past years was pivotal for the development of inter-parliamentary cooperation. Sahiba Gafarova underlined that the Non-Aligned Movement Parliamentary Network received observer status in the APA. The Speaker emphasized that cooperation between these two structures would contribute to the development of parliamentary diplomacy.
The event participants were also updated about the current situation in the South Caucasus, peace and stability, which influence the entire region.
The event will also feature meetings of the standing committees on economic issues and sustainable development, budget and planning, as well as social, cultural and political ones.
The session participants will also adopt the Baku Declaration and the final report about APA`s 14th plenary session.
