TREND, Baku — Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev recently welcomed John Podesta, the Senior Advisor to the U.S. President for International Climate Policy, to discuss upcoming COP29 preparations and bilateral issues, highlighting the strengthening cooperation on climate initiatives between the two nations.

According to Trend News Agency, during the meeting, John Podesta expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to engage with the Azerbaijani president and his team. He noted the high level of professionalism displayed by Azerbaijan in preparing for COP29, despite the limited time frame given to the new presidency. Podesta emphasized the importance of the upcoming summit, particularly focusing on the Biennial Transparency Reports and establishing a New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance.

President Aliyev underscored the productive discussions and reiterated Azerbaijan’s commitment to ensuring a successful COP29, emphasizing the efforts to facilitate well-organized and consensus-driven discussions among participating countries. He expressed confidence that Azerbaijan’s active memberships in various international institutions and its robust international relationships would be instrumental in fostering consensus at the summit.

The meeting also highlighted the effective collaboration between the Azerbaijani and U.S. delegations in the lead-up to COP29, with both sides valuing the pre-COP events in Baku as essential for shaping the summit's agenda.

In addition to climate policy, the talks touched upon the broader regional peace agenda, with President Aliyev detailing Azerbaijan's peace overtures to Armenia following the 44-day Patriotic War, based on five fundamental principles. Podesta reaffirmed U.S. support for Azerbaijan's regional peace initiatives.

The discussions also covered various bilateral issues, underscoring the ongoing strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and the United States, particularly in the realms of international security and economic cooperation.