Following the official welcoming ceremony in Abu Dhabi, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan have met in an expanded format.

Prior to the meeting, state and government officials of the United Arab Emirates were introduced to President Ilham Aliyev, and members of the Azerbaijani delegation were introduced to Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev thanked Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan for inviting him to the United Arab Emirates.

The sides hailed the development of bilateral relations between the two countries. The issues of further expansion of cooperation in the political, economic, trade, investment and other areas was discussed. The existence of good opportunities for developing cooperation in tourism field was emphasized.

President Ilham Aliyev hailed the increase in the number of tourists from Azerbaijan to the United Arab Emirates and from the UAE to the country.

The Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was discussed. The head of state said that 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories were occupied by the Armenian armed forces, with more than one million Azerbaijanis becoming refugees and IDPs. President Ilham Aliyev stressed the importance of settling the conflict in compliance with the international law and within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

President Ilham Aliyev thanked the United Arab Emirates for supporting the adoption of the resolution on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict at the UN General Assembly, saying Azerbaijan also backed the United Arab Emirates` position within the UN and other international organizations.

The regional security issues were discussed. The sides expressed their confidence that cooperation would be further developed.

The head of state invited Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to pay an official visit to Azerbaijan.