The President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan will join the seventh Central Asia Summit in Tashkent on November 16. The President Aliyev previously attended the Central Asia Summit in Dushanbe in 2023 and Astana in 2024—both times as an honorary guest and in an expanded format.

"I express my sincere gratitude to all my colleagues, and first and foremost to the President of Uzbekistan, my brother, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, for the invitation and for supporting Azerbaijan's participation in this significant event," the Azerbaijani president told in an interview with UzA.

According to him, Azerbaijan and the countries of Central Asia form "a single historical, cultural, geographical, and geopolitical space of growing strategic importance."

"The Caspian Sea, at first glance, may physically separate Azerbaijan from the countries of Central Asia, but in reality, it is a significant factor in out unity. Today, the Caspian Sea is more than just a geographical concept; it is, above all, a symbol of the strategic unity, economic potential, and historical cooperation of our peoples," he said.

Ilham Aliyev believes that the countries are united not only by geography but also by historical and cultural ties, shared religious and spiritual values, traditions, and customs.

Before the Summit, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev will pay a state visit to Tashkent from November 14-16.

Ahead of the event, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's article "Central Asia on the Threshold of a New Era" was published on the website of the New Uzbekistan newspaper. In it, Shavkat Mirziyoyev notes that without effective regional institutions, it is impossible to ensure the systematic development of cooperation and the high-quality implementation of joint decisions in Central Asia.