Azerbaijan president holds one-on-one meeting with Italian premier

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Monday held a one-on-one meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who arrived in Azerbaijan on a working visit, according to the presidential press service.

Following expanded-format talks, Aliyev said Italy is a key market for Azerbaijan for both oil and gas, noting that 25 billion cubic meters of natural gas were exported last year, with 9.5 billion cubic meters going to Italy.

He said discussions are ongoing to increase export volumes.

"To achieve this, it is naturally necessary to expand the TAP (Trans Adriatic Pipeline) project, which is part of the Southern Gas Corridor. It has already been expanded to a certain extent, but this process is ongoing," Aliyev said, according to state news agency Azertac.

Aliyev also described Azerbaijan and Italy as strategic partners, adding that Italy remains Baku's top trade partner.