Israeli President Isaac Herzog and his wife Michal took off on Tuesday morning for a state visit to Baku, Azerbaijan at the invitation of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
The purpose of the visit to Azerbaijan, a Shiite Muslim country bordering Iran, is to strengthen the strategic ties between the two countries.
Herzog arrives at the invitation of the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, Photo: Haim Tzach / GPO
The president said before takeoff: "We must remember that beyond trade relations, and beyond historical ties, including the historic Jewish community, Azerbaijan is Iran's neighbor. Iran is an unstable element in the region that is constantly striving for actions against the State of Israel and against the developing alliance of peace and security in the region, and I will certainly discuss this. We will try to promote relations between the countries, as much as possible. Azerbaijan recently inaugurated an embassy in Israel. This is an important Shi'ite Muslim country, with which we would like to advance relations in every possible way."
Herzog also addressed the talks expected to take place at the president's residence: "I would like to reiterate that broad understandings can certainly be reached. This requires effort, goodwill, and leadership, and I suggest ignoring the background noise and thinking about the strategic goal, which is ultimately the good of the State of Israel. No one sells values, no one violates basic principles, but on the other hand, it is good and desirable to discuss the boundaries of the decree in the various authorities in the State of Israel."
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