The event was attended by about 1,000 guests including high-ranking officials of the US Administration, congressmen, representatives of several US states, employees of various state and public organizations, more than 40 ambassadors, representatives of academic circles and the local community, as well as representatives of the Azerbaijani, Turkish and Jewish communities, the Azerbaijani Embassy in the US told AzVision.az on Thursday.

Addressing the reception, Azerbaijani Ambassador Elin Suleymanov said that the high level representation of the US Administration and other government agencies, as well as numerous friends of Azerbaijan in the event is an indicator of attention to Azerbaijan.

Recalling that this year marks the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and the US, the diplomat touched upon strong partnership relations between the two countries.

The ambassador stressed that Azerbaijan became internationally recognized as a result of a consistent policy pursued by the country's leadership. Suleymanov hailed Azerbaijan’s contributions to peace and security as well as to energy security, noting that Azerbaijan takes an active part in a NATO-led peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan.

In his speech, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas Shannon stressed that Azerbaijan remains a close partner of the US in many areas.

He underlined that Azerbaijan contributes to the energy security of Europe and the world by offering new energy sources.

Shannon noted that the launch of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline in 2006 marked a critical phase of the bilateral partnership. With regard to the Southern Gas Corridor project, Shannon emphasized Azerbaijan’s key role in the processing and exporting of US energy resources, referring to President Donald Trump’s recent letter to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in connection with the 24th International Oil and Gas Exhibition held in Baku.

The diplomat outlined that the US is interested to develop trade and business relations with Azerbaijan, adding that his country gives huge importance to cooperating with Azerbaijan in countering terrorism.

In addition to energy and security, he also outlined the importance of political dialogue and promotion of democratic principles.

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