Column: Oklahoma ties with Azerbaijan strong after 30 years | Columnists

Immediately, our observe report is proudly expansive.

In July 2021, a number of days after my new appointment, the primary U.S. delegation I engaged with in Azerbaijan was from Oklahoma. Gov. Kevin Stitt and his crew had been the very best embodiment of the American tradition: open, participating and patriotic.

In the course of the assembly with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev, our profitable cooperation with Oklahoma was hailed. Stitt appeared ahead to strengthening our partnership and connecting Oklahoma corporations with the various financial growth alternatives in Azerbaijan.

Certainly, Azerbaijan, encompassing virtually the two-thirds of the strategically situated South Caucasus economic system and demography, awaits extra enterprise from Oklahoma.

Renewable vitality, data applied sciences, logistics and agriculture are the important thing areas to discover. We’re additionally desirous to host extra college students and bizarre residents to show the very best of our hospitality, historical tradition and vibrant society.

As well as, Azerbaijani corporations are very to take a position, and our youth are filling the ranks of scholars in Oklahoma. We are going to search extra alternatives to deepen our engagement through the journey.

In the meantime, our cooperation with Oklahoma is a critical contribution to the general Azerbaijan-U.S. partnership, which celebrates its thirtieth anniversary this 12 months. Involvement of American vitality corporations in world vitality and transportation initiatives in Azerbaijan has been instrumental in making certain Europe’s vitality safety and defending key U.S. nationwide pursuits.

The eighth ministerial assembly of the Southern Gasoline Hall Advisory Council was held in February in Baku and reaffirmed the strategic vitality partnership between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the European Union primarily based on shared objectives of long-term vitality safety, safety of provide and the inexperienced vitality transition. This hall delivers Caspian fuel from Azerbaijan to Europe by a system of related pipelines.

Azerbaijan’s participation in NATO and U.S.-led operations in Iraq and Afghanistan has demonstrated our widespread imaginative and prescient and joint capabilities.

It isn’t a shock that round half of all of the flights through the operation in Afghanistan passed off over Azerbaijan. Our troops had been among the many final 4 nations defending the Kabul Airport with American, British and Turkish pals.

Our partnership with the Oklahoma Nationwide Guard is considered one of 85 U.S. Nationwide Guard partnerships all over the world and has performed a giant position for our peacekeepers’ interoperability. Early this month, members of the Oklahoma Nationwide Guard visited the Peacekeeping Brigade of Azerbaijan Armed Forces to help with strategic planning and unit coaching and assist attain NATO certification.

We took the phrases of Will Rogers, whose statue Gov. Stitt offered to President Aliyev, critically. He as soon as stated, “Even in case you’re heading in the right direction, you’ll get run over in case you simply sit there.” So we don’t sit.

We do what the scholars at Oklahoma State College, which I’ll go to, proudly name for: “Experience, journey, journey, journey, Experience ‘em Cowboys, Proper down the sphere!”

I do know that we are going to journey to extra and better achievements along with the individuals of the Sooner State and america of America.