Baku: Leyla Aliyeva, Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, met with a visiting delegation of the Holy See led by Archbishop Monsignor Giovanni Cesare Pagazzi, who serves as the Archivist of the Vatican Apostolic Archive and Librarian of the Vatican Library. The discussions centered on reviewing existing cooperation frameworks between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Holy See, as well as outlining future directions for collaboration.
According to Azerbaijan State News Agency, cooperation between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican Apostolic Library and Apostolic Archive has been ongoing since 2012. The discussions evaluated prospects for developing current bilateral ties, planning upcoming initiatives, and reviewing joint projects focused on the digital preservation of collections housed in the Vatican Apostolic Archive.
Archbishop Pagazzi highlighted that last year, Mehriban Aliyeva, First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, visited the Vatican Apostolic Library and Apostolic Archive during an official visit to the Holy See. He emphasized that extensive cooperation has been established between Azerbaijan and the Holy See, as well as between the Foundation and various Holy See institutions.
During his visit to Azerbaijan, Pagazzi held high-level meetings with representatives of local institutions, which focused on identifying, analyzing, translating, and digitizing rare manuscripts related to Azerbaijan preserved in the Vatican's historic collections. The cooperation agreement between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Vatican institutions has already led to extensive restoration and digitization of significant manuscripts related to Azerbaijan's historical and cultural heritage and the heritage of Turkic-speaking peoples.
A Memorandum of Understanding signed last year between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, and the Vatican institutions outlines plans for a delegation of Azerbaijani scholars to conduct extensive research at the Vatican in 2026. This research will cover historical materials on the South Caucasus and Azerbaijan, including diplomatic correspondence between the Aq Qoyunlu and Safavid rulers and the Popes of Rome.
Future cooperation discussions also included the possibility of Azerbaijani students studying library science and archival studies at the Vatican. During the meeting, a traditional Azerbaijani carpet was presented as a gift to the visiting delegation, while the guests reciprocated with a historical document from the Vatican Archive related to Azerbaijan's history.
Following the meeting, Leyla Aliyeva and Archbishop Pagazzi toured the exhibitions at the Heydar Aliyev Center. During the tour of the Classic Cars exhibition, Anar Alakbarov, Director of the Heydar Aliyev Center and President of the Azerbaijan Automobile Federation, briefed the Archbishop on rare vehicles from various historical eras. The delegation also viewed the 'My Seas, My Oceans' exhibition, organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the IDEA Public Union, which highlights critical global issues related to water resources.