Meloni Visits Baku to Cement the Italy–Azerbaijan Strategic Partnership

(Vasif Huseynov – The Jamestown Foundation) Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited Azerbaijan on May 4, holding talks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku that produced a roadmap for elevating their comprehensive strategic partnership across energy, defense, investment, and education. Meloni arrived in Baku directly from the European Political Community summit in Yerevan, a route that reinforces the progress of the Armenia–Azerbaijan normalization process and Italy’s positioning as Azerbaijan’s principal partner inside the European Union. The visit consolidated Azerbaijan’s role as a cornerstone of Italian energy security, with both leaders endorsing further expansion of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline and committing to convert their bilateral relationship into a permanent political coordination mechanism. – Meloni Visits Baku to Cement the Italy–Azerbaijan Strategic Partnership – Jamestown