Azerbaijan State News Agency-AZERTAC and ANSA news agency of Italy have signed a new cooperation agreement in the online signing ceremony at the headquarters of both agencies. The ceremony was joined by the chairman of the Board of AZERTAC, Aslan Aslanov, and the Chief Executive Officer of ANSA, Stefano De Alessandri, as well as the Italian Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Claudio Taffuri, and the Azerbaijani Ambassador to Italy, Mammad Ahmadzade.

Expressing his satisfaction with the signing of the partnership agreement with AZERTAC, the Chief Executive Officer of ANSA, Stefano De Alessandri, said that both agencies have been successfully cooperating for many years both in the bilateral format and within the framework of international organizations, in which they hold membership. He said that the most important of these international organizations is the European Alliance of News Agencies. “I believe that the signed agreement is a new stage in our cooperation. We will receive news on the developments in Azerbaijan from AZERTAC by conducting news exchange. I am sure that this will contribute to strengthening relations between our countries”, he noted.

Addressing the event, the Chairman of the Board of AZERTAC, Aslan Aslanov, said that by signing the new agreement, AZERTAC and ANSA have again demonstrated their faithfulness to many years of relations of partnership and their interest in taking cooperation to a new level. “Our first agreement with ANSA, the leading news agency of Italy and the world, was signed in February 2005. During the visit of the President of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev to Italy, we held a very fruitful meeting with the leadership of this agency at the head office of ANSA in Rome and signed a document of great importance for both agencies. Over the past years, we have successfully cooperated both bilaterally and within the framework of international organizations we are members of,” he said.

Saying that the relations between Azerbaijan and Italy are always on a high level, the chairman of the Board noted that the ties between the two peoples are based on deep historic roots. “I am sure that the renewed agreement will give an impetus to our partnership in information and video exchange, ensure the circulation of news about our countries from original and reliable sources, and further strengthen mutual trust. In an era of rapid spread of disinformation and fake news, there is a great need for reliable news agencies to exchange information directly. Therefore, this document will also serve to circulate reliable information,” Aslanov said.

Describing Azerbaijan and Italy as strategic partners, Ambassador Mammad Ahmadzade noted that the two countries enjoy broad relations in economic, political, cultural and other fields. The official visit by the President of Italy, Sergio Matarella, to Azerbaijan in 2018 and the official visit by the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, to Italy in 2020 made great contributions to further strengthening the relations between the two countries, and a document on strategic partnership was signed. Emphasizing the successfully developing relations between Azerbaijan and Italy in the field of energy, as well as non-oil, humanitarian and cultural areas, the ambassador highlighted the projects, which were successfully implemented by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in Italy at the initiative of First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva. The ambassador said that the singing of the new agreement between AZERTAC and ANSA is an important step in the field of news.

Ambassador Claudio Taffuri said that the relations between Italy and Azerbaijan do not only comprise successful cooperation in the oil and gas fields, but are also aimed at building the relations between the two countries on a much higher level. Stressing the importance of close cooperation between ANSA and AZERTAC as reliable sources of news, the diplomat described the singing of the new agreement as another remarkable event in bilateral relations.

At the end of the ceremony, the chairman of the Board of AZERTAC, Aslan Aslanov, and the Chief Executive Officer of ANSA, Stefano De Alessandri, signed the agreement. Under the document, both agencies will exchange news and videos in English every day. In addition, the agreement envisions mutual support in covering the developments and important events in both countries.