BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 26. The Speaker of
the Azerbaijani Parliament, Sahiba Gafarova, spotlighted the
contribution of Azerbaijan's chairmanship in the Asian
Parliamentary Assembly (APA) to the growth of the assembly's role
in parliamentary diplomacy during her speech at the 16th plenary
session of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) in Bahrain, a
source in the parliament told Trend.
In her speech, Speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament Sahiba
Gafarova noted that Azerbaijan assumed the chairmanship of the
Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) during the 14th plenary session
held in Baku in February 2024. Throughout its tenure, Azerbaijan
has actively worked to strengthen cooperation and foster dialogue
within the assembly, underscoring the significance the country
places on the APA as a key interparliamentary platform. Gafarova
further emphasized that, in celebrating the 20th anniversary of the
APA’s founding this year, the Assembly has solidified its position
as a crucial multilateral institution for constructive dialogue and
solidarity.
Reflecting on the achievements of the past two years, Gafarova
highlighted the expansion of the APA’s membership under
Azerbaijan’s leadership. Notably, during the 15th plenary session
held in Baku last year, the Council of Oman became a full member of
the APA, while the Republican Council of the National Assembly of
Belarus was granted observer status. The number of international
organizations holding observer status in the APA also increased,
with the Association of Secretaries General of Arab Parliaments
joining their ranks.
Gafarova highlighted that during the Azerbaijani chairmanship,
special attention was paid to institutional development issues,
Bureau meetings were resumed, and they were held within the
framework of the meetings of the Standing Committees. She noted
that this, in turn, allows for a more operational review and
discussion of issues on the organization's agenda. At the same
time, the speaker emphasized that great attention was paid to the
creation of new mechanisms that would strengthen the activities of
the assembly, including the initiative put forward by Azerbaijan to
establish a Commission on Women. She also noted that during the
Azerbaijani chairmanship, a consensus was reached on the decision
to form the APA budget, which is of great importance in terms of
expanding the capabilities of the assembly.
She said that extensive work was carried out to improve the
coordination mechanisms of APA, and during the Azerbaijani
chairmanship, four coordination meetings of the organization were
held within the framework of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
According to her, these meetings were effective in terms of
strengthening cooperation and coordination on international issues
of common interest.
The speaker emphasized that during Azerbaijan's chairmanship,
special attention was paid to the issues of increasing the role of
APA in parliamentary diplomacy and its international reputation.
She pointed out that she considers the development of cooperation
between APA and other inter-parliamentary organizations to be an
effective means of achieving this goal. In particular, fruitful
relations have been established between APA and the Parliamentary
Network of the Non-Aligned Movement, which Azerbaijan currently
chairs, and the APA delegation is regularly represented in the work
of the Network.
The speaker noted that, against the backdrop of the current
difficulties and conflicts in the world, the promotion of
intercultural and inter-civilizational dialogue is no longer an
option, but a necessity because achieving global peace and
prosperity, first of all, requires building trust and mutual
understanding between peoples. According to the speaker, in this
sense, the Asian region has great potential with its rich heritage.
She said that the diversity of the region should not be perceived
as a dividing line between the countries, but as a value that
brings them closer and makes their dialogue meaningful.
In her speech, Gafarova underscored that Azerbaijan is a
committed supporter of intercultural dialogue, and noted that the
country has made continuous contributions to this process by
hosting prestigious events such as the UN Alliance of Civilizations
Forum, the Global Baku Forum, and the Summit of World Religious
Leaders. It was noted that the World Forum for Intercultural
Dialogue, held within the framework of the "Baku Process" initiated
by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, is
recognized by the UN as the main global platform for intercultural
and interreligious dialogue. The Interparliamentary Conference,
organized by the Azerbaijani parliament within the framework of the
6th Forum held in May 2024, gave this dialogue a "parliamentary
dimension".
The speaker recalled that during her speech at the 6th World
Conference of Speakers of Parliament, organized by the
Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in July 2025, she called on the IPU
to include intercultural dialogue in its future agenda and
activities. He expressed his appreciation for APA's efforts to
address this issue.
Touching upon the issue of combating climate change, which is a
priority on APA's agenda, the speaker said that Azerbaijan, which
successfully hosted COP29 in 2024, is building bridges between
different parties and promoting global solidarity.
She expressed confidence that another regional state, brotherly
Türkiye, will host COP31 at a high level, and its activities in
this field will play an important role in achieving global climate
goals.
Furthermore, Gafarova emphasized the importance of another
important event that the region will host in 2026 - the 13th
session of the World Urban Forum to be held in Baku in May of this
year, adding that sustainable urban development is closely related
to the global development agenda. She invited all APA member
countries to actively participate in this forum.
The chairmanship of APA has been officially transferred to the
Council of Representatives of Bahrain.
