BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 14. The participation of President Ilham Aliyev in the 5th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia demonstrates the sincere desire of our peoples for comprehensive strengthening of the age-old bonds of friendship and mutual understanding, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said at the 5th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia, TurkicWorld reports.

"I would like to extend a special welcome to our esteemed guest, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev. The participation of the leader of fraternal Azerbaijan convincingly demonstrates the sincere desire of our peoples for the comprehensive strengthening of the age-old bonds of friendship and mutual understanding," he emphasized.

"I'm confident that today's summit will indeed be significant and will determine the future of our multifaceted cooperation," the President of Kazakhstan added.

The initiative to hold consultative meetings of the heads of state of Central Asia was put forward by President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev in 2017. The first meeting was held in Kazakhstan, the second in Uzbekistan, the third in Turkmenistan, and the fourth in Kyrgyzstan.