President Ilham Aliyev Attends COP31 Climate Summit in Antalya
On November 11, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva joined international leaders in Antalya, Turkey, for the COP31 climate summit. Their daughter Leyla Aliyeva also participated in the event, according to azertag.az.
The event opened with an artistic program at the Expo Center in Antalya, where Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres greeted arriving heads of state, according to azertag.az. Following a family photo session, Guterres, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and Erdogan addressed the summit.
In his speech, Erdogan thanked Azerbaijan and Brazil for sharing the experience they accumulated during their respective presidencies of previous COP conferences.
Later in the month, on November 23, President Aliyev and First Lady Aliyeva visited the city of Agdam, as detailed in reports from president.az. Traveling to the region, the president drove his own vehicle and pointed out former enemy defense lines along the route.
“We without a single shot liberated the city of Agdam and lands of Agdam district that were under occupation,” Aliyev told president.az. “Having won a victory over the enemy on the battlefield, we forced him to leave Agdam district.”
President Ilham Aliyev arrived at Expo Center in Antalya to attend COP31 Leaders' Summit.https://t.co/jq7VetaxYu pic.twitter.com/1J4rNEGiwN
Aliyev raised the Azerbaijani flag in Agdam, marking the return of state symbols to the area after 27 years. The presidential couple also visited the ruined Agdam Mosque, where Aliyev presented a Quran brought from Mecca and led prayers.
“We have successfully fulfilled our historical mission, we liberated occupied lands from the enemy,” Aliyev said in a speech outside the mosque published by president.az, noting that military victories allowed the return of the Agdam, Kalbajar, and Lachin districts.
“We returned to these lands at the cost of the life and blood of the Azerbaijani people, our martyrs, thanks to the courage of our heroes,” Aliyev told president.az.
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