Azerbaijan`s Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People's Republic of China have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the area of ecological and environmental protection in Beijing, Azernews reports.

The document was inked by Azerbaijani Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Mukhtar Babayev, who is on a visit to China, and Chinese Minister of Ecology and Environment Huang Runqiu.

The document envisages cooperation dealing with environmental protection, addressing climate change, solid waste management, biodiversity protection, ecological restoration, environmental monitoring, and other realms. Additionally, Azerbaijan and China are slated to cooperate on green development within international and regional organisations. For these purposes, information exchange and reciprocal visits will be carried out, scientific research will be conducted, and joint events to be hosted.

During the meeting, the Azerbaijani delegation underscored that the mutual trust and friendly relations between the heads of state, Ilham Aliyev and Xi Jinping, ensure the swift development of relations between Azerbaijan and China in various domains. The Azerbaijani Minister described Azerbaijan as one of the first countries to support China's initiatives, including the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Ministers emphasised that Azerbaijan and China enjoy great potential for mutually beneficial cooperation in various facets, including ecology, protection of the environment and biodiversity, addressing climate change, and green development.

Shedding light on the process of preparation for the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), scheduled to take place in Azerbaijan this year, Minister Mukhtar Babayev underscored that Azerbaijan constantly supports international efforts in the area of environmental protection and global climate change and contributes to this process.

Chinese Minister Huang Runqiu expressed optimism that Azerbaijan would successfully organise COP29, one of the major and most prestigious events in the world, saying that his country is eager to actively participate in COP29 and provide all feasible support to Azerbaijan.