Azerbaijan backs Palestinian state

BAKU:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev expressed his country's support for the establishment of an "independent and sovereign" Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital on Thursday.

A statement by the Azerbaijani presidency said Aliyev's remarks came during a meeting with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, during which he expressed confidence that the Palestinian premier's visit would contribute to strengthening fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Palestine.

"The President of Azerbaijan emphasised that our country supports the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital," the statement said. Noting that Mustafa conveyed the greetings of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to Aliyev, the statement said he asked the Palestinian prime minister to also convey his own greetings to his counterpart.