First lady Mehriban Aliyeva meets with head of Azerbaijan-Italy friendship group at Italian Senate
Azerbaijani first lady, president of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva has today met with a delegation led by head of Azerbaijan-Italy friendship group at the Italian Senate Mauro Maria Marino, who visit the country to attend the 5th Baku International Humanitarian Forum.
The first lady pointed to tolerance and multiculturalism in Azerbaijan. She said Pope Francis will visit the country in a few days.
Mehriban Aliyeva said representatives of all religions join holiday celebrations in Azerbaijan, and praised this as a message against some stereotypes.
She hailed Azerbaijan-Italy relations, saying the Heydar Aliyev Foundation is closely involved in restoration and preservation of cultural monuments in Italy.
Members of the Italian delegation hailed the Foundation`s assistance, noting that such projects contribute to strengthening the bilateral relations.
They put forward an initiative to establish a sister city relationship between Azerbaijan’s Icherisheher and Italian Matera, which will be the European Capital of Culture in 2019.
Mehriban Aliyeva hailed the initiative, saying such measures created good opportunities for establishing inter-regional ties.