Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser on Thursday said Pakistan valued its close brotherly relations with Azerbaijan which were based on historic, cultural and religious commonalities. He said that Pakistan intended to further cement those relations through parliamentary and economic cooperation. He was talking to the Ambassador of Azerbaijan Ali Fikrat Oglu Alizada, who called on the Speaker in Parliament House, today. The Speaker said that the support, both the countries extend to each other on different issues and forums was a manifestation of strong ties between Pakistan and Azerbaijan. He said that both the countries have commonalities of views and perceptions on various regional and international issues. He appreciated Azerbaijani support to Pakistan on the principled stand of Kashmir. The Speaker asked the Ambassador to facilitate Azerbaijani business community to visit Pakistan for exploring further avenues of cooperation in diverse fields. The Speaker stressed the need for enhancing cooperation between the legislatures of brotherly countries. He said that parliamentarians could play a vital role in building bridges of friendship and cooperation between Pakistan and Azerbaijan. He informed the Ambassador about the reactivation of Pakistan-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Friendship Group in National Assembly. He also asked Ambassador to convey his invitation to his Azerbaijani counterpart to visit Pakistan. The Ambassador Ali Fikrat Oglu Alizada agreed with the Speaker and said that government and people of Azerbaijan greatly value their friendship with Pakistan. He said that his government was thankful to Pakistan for its unwavering support on the issue of Nagorno Karabakh. He said that Azerbaijan and Pakistan share same views on various matter including Kashmir issue and would continue extending its support on regional and internal foras. He agreed for enhancing parliamentary and economic ties with Pakistan. He said that political leadership of Azerbaijan was committed to strengthen its ties with Pakistan. Published in Daily Times, February 15th 2019.