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Azerbaijan and the European Union have maintained a positive relationship through the years and have become more closely linked. Azerbaijan is currently part of the European Neighborhood Policy and the Council of Europe, and is a large recipient of aid and infrastructure investment from the European Union. ==Background== Until the fall of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan had little contact with non-Soviet Europe. During the Soviet years, North Azerbaijan (today’s Republic of Azerbaijan) became the Azerbaijan SSR. It remained that until the Azerbaijani Supreme Court declared independence from the Soviet Union in September 1989, only to have this declaration made invalid in November 1989 by authorities in Moscow. The state finally gained independence in August 1991, and joined the United Nations in 1992.〔“History of Azerbaijan.” http://www.azerb.com/az-hist.html. 2004, Accessed 12 November 2008〕 Through the UN and government policies, Azerbaijan has reached out to the international community, especially Europe, and has opened up its economy. Formal relations with the EU began in 1996 when the EU-Azerbaijan Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) was signed. This agreement entered into force in 1999.〔“European Commission External Relations: Azerbaijan.” http://ec.europa.eu/external_relations/azerbaijan/index_en.htm. 25 November 2008, Accessed 26 November 2008.〕 This agreement marked the beginning of a mainly positive relationship between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the European Union, with both sides benefitting from the relationship. Azerbaijan also strengthened its relations with Europe by becoming the 43rd state to join the Council of Europe on January 25, 2001.〔“Azerbaijan and the Council of Europe.” http://www.coe.int/T/E/Com/About_Coe/Member_states/e_az.asp#TopOfPage. 5 June 2008, Accessed 12 November 2008.〕 By doing so, Azerbaijan opened itself up even more to Europe and the West. Since joining, Azerbaijan has ratified 50 treaties〔“Statistics on Signatures and Ratifications: Azerbaijan.” http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/Commun/ListeStats.asp?PO=AZE&MA=999&CM=17&CL=ENG. 12 November 2008, Accessed 12 November 2008.〕 and has been actively involved in the Council. As the EU grew in size and scope, it launched the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP). Azerbaijan joined the policy in 2004, and the ENP’s action plan for Azerbaijan was adopted on November 14, 2006, after being passed by the Azerbaijani government and the European Commission. Key items included on the plan are investment in Azerbaijan’s infrastructure, partial integration of the Azerbaijani economy into Europe’s, and partnerships with Azerbaijan on extracting oil from the Azerbaijani controlled part of the Caspian Sea.〔“European Neighborhood Policy: Azerbaijan.” http://ec.europa.eu/world/enp/partners/enp_azerbaijan_en.htm. 19 March 2007, Accessed 12 November 2008.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Azerbaijan–European Union relations」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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