"Every time I visit Uzbekistan, I discover how close our languages truly are. With a little effort, one could easily claim to be speaking in their own homeland," said Hikmat Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration.
According to the Operative Information Center-OMM, Hajiyev made these remarks during an interview with journalists in Tashkent. He noted that officials from Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan often attempt to communicate using a combination of their respective languages.
"This approach proves effective to a certain extent. When specific terminology is required, we sometimes switch to Russian, but we primarily strive to prioritize the Azerbaijani and Uzbek languages. Written texts are easier to understand, and with more exposure to pronunciation, comprehension becomes much simpler. It just requires a bit of practice," Hajiyev explained.
The cultural and linguistic affinity between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan is rooted in their shared Turkic heritage. Both nations are key members of the Organization of Turkic States, an intergovernmental organization promoting comprehensive cooperation among Turkic-speaking countries. In recent years, Baku and Tashkent have significantly strengthened their bilateral relations, focusing on deepening political, economic, and humanitarian ties, which are further bolstered by these deep-seated historical and linguistic connections.
