EU eyes to negotiate new agreement with Azerbaijan

This reflects the emphasis on differentiation in the EU's recently reviewed European Neighbourhood Policy, the press service added.

Earlier, Deputy Head of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan Mahmud Mammad-Guliyev said that the EU may issue Azerbaijan a mandate to start negotiations on a new agreement on strategic partnership in October 2016.

"Azerbaijan is an important partner of the EU," the press service noted. "We hope to launch negotiations on the new agreement soon."

The EU delegation is scheduled to take part in the EU-Azerbaijan Justice, Freedom and Security (JFS) and Human Rights Subcommittee meeting October 12-13.

"The main purpose of the meeting is to take stock of the JFS, Human Rights and Democracy situation in the country, assess the progress made by the country in all relevant areas, and explore ways to deepen the EU-Azerbaijan cooperation in this new context of our bilateral relations," said the EU press service.

Currently, bilateral relations between the EU and Azerbaijan are regulated on the basis of the partnership and cooperation agreement which was signed in 1996 and entered into force in 1999.

The new agreement envisages bringing Azerbaijan's legislation and procedures closer to the most important international and trade standards of the EU. This process is meant to improve the access of Azerbaijani products to the EU markets.