On September 22, the opening ceremony of the "Azerbaijani-Turkish Medical Business Forum and Exhibition" was held in Baku. The event was organized with the support of the Ministries of Health of both countries.

First, after the National Anthems of Azerbaijan and Turkey were played, the dear memory of the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan was commemorated with a minute of silence.

At the opening ceremony, Minister of Health Teymur Musayev noted that friendly relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan have always been special. In his speech, the minister stressed that the Azerbaijani-Turkish Medical Business Forum and Exhibition organized for the first time in our country is another confirmation of the high level of relations between the fraternal countries: "Today is a significant day for the healthcare system and the medical community of our countries. The friendly and sincere relations of the heads of state serve further to deepen our cooperation in all areas, including healthcare."

According to him, about 200 of our compatriots were sent to Turkey for treatment with the support of the "YAŞAT Foundation", established to aid the victims and martyr families. The minister also noted that the Azerbaijan Medical University cooperates with 20 universities in Turkey: "A clear indicator of the success of the relationship between the two countries in the field of medical education is that at present, more than 700 Turkish citizens are receiving higher medical education at the Azerbaijan Medical University."

Teymur Musayev expressed hope that the joint medical business forum will serve as a platform for entrepreneurial and investment activities of Turkish business entities in the healthcare sector of Azerbaijan. "We highly appreciate the forum's significance in developing existing relations between our countries in the field of pharmaceuticals and medical equipment. We believe our cooperation will continue and strengthen, and the medical forum will create new investment opportunities. Joint activities in the healthcare sector will increase the satisfaction of our citizens with the healthcare system and improve the population's health and quality of life," concluded the Minister of Health of Azerbaijan.

In his speech, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca expressed his condolences to the families of the soldiers who became martyrs as a result of Armenia's provocations. He also conveyed the greetings and warm wishes of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the fraternal Turkish people to the event participants.

Emphasizing the brilliant and unconditional victory of the Azerbaijani army led by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev during the Patriotic War, the Turkish minister stressed that it was a great honour to be in Baku, the most ancient city of the Turkic world, which was liberated from occupation on September 15, 1918, under the leadership of Nuru Pasha.

Fahrettin Koca emphasized that Turkey and Azerbaijan are two important centers of power: "As in any field, our cooperation in the field of medicine is on the rise. I am sure that the medical business forum will expand our current cooperation and pave the way for developing novel plans. We still have a lot of work to do in this area."

"Turkey has vast experience hosting a joint business forum in the healthcare field. Private medical companies of the countries represented at the forum, as well as improvement of the financial mechanism in health care and investment opportunities, are discussed," concluded the Turkish health minister.

Later, Teymur Musayev and Fahrettin Koca got acquainted with the stands of the medical business forum and had conversations with the representatives of the companies participating in the exhibition about their achievements and programs for further development.

In conclusion, the Ministers of Health of Turkey and Azerbaijan answered questions from the media.

The medical business forum and exhibition continued its work with panel sessions. Extensive discussions were held around the topic.

It should be noted that the "Azerbaijani-Turkish Medical Business Forum and Exhibition" will end on September 23.