Participating in the service trade fair for four consecutive years, the Azerbaijani commercial representative in China said so

The 2022 China International Fair for Trade in Services was held from August 31 to September 5. This year's service trade fair set up a global trade in services summit, exhibition display, forum meeting, promotion and negotiation, results release, supporting activities 6 types of activities, the level of internationalization further improved, more than 400 of the world's top 500 and international leading enterprises to participate in the exhibition.

This year is the fourth time that Azerbaijan has participated in the service trade fair. With the help of the platform of the Service Trade Fair, Azerbaijan focuses on promoting the country's business environment, investment and transit transport potential, tourism resources, etc. In addition to this, in the Azerbaijani State Exhibition Area, agricultural and sideline products such as high-quality food and wine made in Azerbaijan are displayed.

Why have you participated in the service trade fair for four consecutive years? What are the highlights of this service trade fair in Azerbaijan? What is the business environment and investment opportunities in Azerbaijan? The Beijing News reporter interviewed Temur Nadirogru, commercial representative of the Azerbaijani Embassy in China and minister extraordinary and plenipotentiary, on these issues.

Temur Nadiroglu said that this year is the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Argentina, in the past 30 years, many of our cooperation in the economic field have been successful, and in the future, Azerbaijan will increase production in the non-oil sector, while increasing the demand for China's advanced machinery and equipment. It expressed the hope that Chinese companies can play an important role in Azerbaijan's high-tech projects of green energy, smart cities and smart rural areas.

Commercial Representative of the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Beijing and Minister Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Temur Nadirogru. Beijing News shell financial reporter Zhao Fangyuan photo

Talk about highlights and advantages

Azerbaijan has an excellent geographical location

Beijing News: Azerbaijan is participating in the service trade fair for the fourth time this year, why did it choose to participate in the service trade fair for four consecutive years?

Temur Nadirogru: The Trade Fair is a particularly important comprehensive international exhibition, a platform where new partners can be found and ideas can be exchanged, providing Azerbaijan with a stage to showcase the potential of investment and service trade.

We also held the Azerbaijan Investment and Trade Opportunities Forum to introduce azerbaijani investment environment and cooperation opportunities in the field of trade with the help of the service trade fair.

Beijing News: What are the highlights of Azerbaijan's participation in the service trade fair?

Temur Nadirogru: Companies visiting the Azerbaijani booth this year were able to learn about the services offered by Azerbaijan to potential investors and the relevant preferential policies.

At our booth, there are information and information on the Alat Free Economic Zone, Azerbaijani Industrial Parks and Agricultural Parks, as well as services provided to investors by the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency, the Azerbaijan Free Economic Zone Development Authority, the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan and the Fourth Industrial Revolution Analysis and Coordination Center, as well as information on opportunities to cooperate with these relevant government departments, as well as the display of high-quality food and agricultural and sideline products.

In addition, we have a separate section of the Azerbaijan State Oil Company, with the theme of "Green Innovation for the Future", introducing the company's strategic goals by 2035, mainly energy innovation, digital innovation, and other new cooperation opportunities.

Beijing News: What are Azerbaijan's advantages in the field of service trade?

Temur Nadiroglu: First of all, in the field of international transport, Azerbaijan spans the two continents of Asia and Europe, is an important transportation hub connecting Asia and Europe, and has made great contributions to the international hub of Asia and Europe. Azerbaijan is also one of the first countries to support China's Belt and Road Initiative, which has played an important role in strengthening China-EU trade under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The operation of the Baku International Maritime Trade Port and the opening of the Bilis-Kars Railway have created the necessary infrastructure, and trains from China can be transported to Europe through the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor. At present, goods from Xi'an, Qingdao, Lianyungang, Jinhua, Yiwu and other cities in China have been transported through the trans-Caspian Sea transport corridor.

In terms of air cargo, we have Baku Heydar Aliyev International Airport, which is an important transport link between Asia and Europe. Azerbaijan-based Silk Road Western Air Cargo Company has 50 trains with more than 250 flights per month, including flights to Hong Kong, Shanghai, Zhengzhou, Henan and other places. These infrastructures provide a variety of services for the two countries in multimodal transport cooperation, such as air, sea, and rail.

In the field of tourism, Azerbaijan also has a very large resource advantage. Azerbaijan integrates Eastern and Western cultures, and azerbaijan occupies 9 of the 12 climate zones in the world, and we have very rich natural and historical and cultural resources. Hopefully, after the epidemic passes, we will be able to meet more Chinese tourists in Azerbaijan.

Talk about the potential of China-Arab cooperation

China and Arab countries will be closer to each other in terms of international transportation and transportation

Beijing News: What is the potential of service trade cooperation between China and Azerbaijan?

Temur Nadiroglu: We hope to strengthen cooperation with China in the fields of information technology, artificial intelligence and the digital economy. Chinese enterprises have very rich experience in the digital economy, financial technology, ranking among the top in the world, Azerbaijan will be happy to use the technology of Chinese companies and welcome Chinese investment in this field.

Enterprises in two friendly countries can expand cooperative relations in a number of economic fields, including trade and investment, renewable energy, transportation, agriculture, industry, tourism, communications, technological innovation, and finance, and I believe that Chinese enterprises can achieve regional success in Azerbaijan.

Beijing News: What is the business environment and investment opportunities in Azerbaijan? This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Argentina, what are the focus of future trade cooperation between the two sides?

Temur Nadiroglu: Azerbaijan has a stable political situation, good infrastructure, a superior geographical environment, preferential policies for foreign investors, and a number of state support measures in the digital economy. Although affected by the epidemic, under the government's epidemic prevention measures and economic reforms and new development strategies, Azerbaijan's GDP growth rate from January to July this year was 6.2%.

This year has been a very important year for the relationship between the two countries, and over the past 30 years, many of our cooperation in the economic field have been successful, and bilateral trade between the two countries has increased significantly. According to customs data for 2021, China is Azerbaijan's fourth largest trading partner and the third largest source of imports.

In the future, I think China and Arab countries will have closer exchanges in terms of international transportation and transportation.

In addition, we will also increase production in the non-oil sector, Azerbaijan attaches special importance to the development of non-oil and non-gas sectors, so Azerbaijan will increase the demand for Advanced Machinery and Equipment in China.

Another direction of cooperation is the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the Karabakh Economic Zone of Azerbaijan and the East Zangezur Economic Zone. We hope that in terms of rebuilding the relevant areas, Chinese enterprises can play an important role in Azerbaijan's high-tech projects of green energy, smart cities and smart rural areas.

Beijing News shell financial reporter Zhao Fangyuan Editor Chen Li Proofreader Liu Baoqing