On October 1, the 13th international meeting of ministers and parliament members of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF) was held at the administrative building of the Milli Majlis (Azerbaijani President) in Baku, the Press and public relations department of the Milli Majlis told this.

The 13th meeting, preceding the 74th Baku International Astronautical Congress to be hosted by our country from October 2nd to 6th, was held. The meeting was moderated by Dominique Tilmans, advisor to the President of IAF.

Opening the event, the President of IAF, Clay Mowry, greeted the participants and spoke about the significance of the International Astronautical Congress held since 1950. He shared ideas about the impact of space activities on the development of new technologies, improvement of living conditions, and progress in economy, science, and education. He expressed gratitude to Azerbaijan for the high-level organization of the event.

Following, Tahir Mirkishili, Chairman of the Economic Policy, Industry, and Entrepreneurship Committee of the Milli Majlis, addressed the parliamentarians, government representatives, and other participants from various countries in the name of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Speaker Sahiba Gafarova on the occasion of the 74th International Astronautical Congress set to commence in Baku the next morning. He stated that fifty years ago, in 1973, the 24th Congress was held in Baku under the initiative of Heydar Aliyev, the National Leader of Azerbaijan. This year, we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of our Great Leader and commemorating his memory with great respect. Now, our country is hosting the largest cosmic event - the 74th International Astronautical Congress in 2023. This signifies that the International Astronautical Congress is returning to our region after half a century.

Then, the Ambassador of Italy to our country, Claudio Taffuri, who spoke at the event, regarded this gathering as a very important meeting in the field of space. He provided information about the developments in the space sector in Italy, the production of equipment, and the participation in projects in this direction.

Later, the moderator of the event, Dominique Tilmans, advisor to the President of IAF, shared his thoughts on the role of space activities in ensuring people's well-being, managing risks in the climate sector, creating new jobs, and ensuring the security of countries through the implementation of satellite-based solutions. He emphasized the importance of this meeting in defining the strategies of countries in the space sector.

Then, the participants of the event held discussions on three panel topics. The first panel was dedicated to "Space Solutions for Improving the Quality of Public Services," the second panel focused on "Space Solutions for Disaster Mitigation and Risk Management," and the third panel addressed "Space Solutions for Resource Management."

During the discussions, former President of IAF, Jan-Ives Le Gall, the Director General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Salim AlMalik, Director of IAF's Slovakia Office, Michel Brecht, Deputy Chairman of the Board of "Azercosmos," Fuad Aslanov, Secretary-General of the Turkic Council, Kubanychbek Omuraliev, Deputy Minister of Industry and Technology of Türkiye, Ahmet Yozqatlıgil, Member of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, Zeynep Yıldız, Chairman of the Economic Policy, Industry, and Entrepreneurship Committee of the Milli Majlis, Tahir Mirkishili, Deputy Vugar Bayramov, Chairman of the Senate Committee of Romania, Marius Humelnicu, Member of the German Parliament, Malte Kaufman, Representative of the Polish Parliament, Bożena Wętor, Member of the Australian Senate and Minister Chris Schacht, and others, shared their views on the importance of space activities, space solutions for public services, projects implemented in this field, the new era of space, and other related issues.

The Chairman of the Economic Policy, Industry, and Entrepreneurship Committee of the Milli Majlis, Tahir Mirkishili, and the Advisor to the President of IAF, Dominique Tilmans, emphasized the importance of holding such meetings. They noted the usefulness of the discussions and extended their best wishes for the successful commencement of the 74th Baku International Astronautical Congress, which Azerbaijan will host the next morning.

Following the event, a press conference was held for local and foreign media representatives. During the press conference, detailed answers were provided to the questions that interested journalists.