Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev started his two-day official visit to Italy on Thursday

President Ilham Aliyev started his two-day official visit to Italy on Thursday. The Nagorno Karabakh conflict was in focus at the President’s meeting with his Italian counterpart Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, Aliyev told a joint news conference afterwards. Aliyev expressed his dissatisfaction with the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group, reiterating that he supports a conflict settlement within international legal norms. He said that the four resolutions on the Karabakh conflict passed by the UN Security Council simply remain on paper because of Armenia. From this standpoint, the two presidents emphasized the importance of conducting reforms in the United Nations and creating relevant mechanisms that would allow increasing its influence. The President also said that Italy-Azerbaijan relations are developing successfully. He noted that Azerbaijan is rapidly integrating into Euro-Atlantic organizations and has been the initiator of numerous economic projects, implemented in the South Caucasus region. Italian President Ciampi, in turn, said that favorable conditions have been created to expand the current ties between the two countries. He highly appreciated Azerbaijan’s activity in the Council of Europe and the successful fulfillment of its commitments to the organization. President Aliyev also met with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and Chairman of Italian ENI oil company Roberto Poli. ENI is involved in the development of hydrocarbon reserves in Azerbaijan and holds a share in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline project. On Friday, Aliyev will attend a forum to be participated in by Italian businessmen. Documents on cooperation in economics, customs, culture and mass media, as well as on fraternization of Baku and Rome, will be signed. Azerbaijani and Italian presidents are expected to sign a joint declaration.