Toespraak burgemeester Jan van Zanen bij de Onafhankelijkheidsdag van Azerbeidzjan op dinsdag 26 mei 2026

Ambassador Ahmadzada,
Representatives of the Embassy of Azerbaijan and the Azerbaijan community in the Netherlands,

Dear (founding and future) members of the newly started chamber of commerce,

Distinguished guests,

As last year,
it is a true pleasure and honour to be here with you today
to celebrate your Independence Day.

Exactly one week ago,
I returned from a short visit to your country.
At the Ambassador’s request,
I am pleased to share a few reflections on that visit.

It was my first introduction to Azerbaijan,
and in many ways a memorable one,
also because I had the privilege of attending the World Urban Forum (WUF).
An impressive amount of 24.000 participants from 169 countries
travelled to Baku for this global gathering in the Olympic Stadium of Baku.

During the WUF national, regional and local leaders form all over the world strived for accelerating collaboration, innovation and practical action on the issue of housing and sustainable urbanization.

And housing is not only about shelter. It is about dignity, opportunity, climate resilience, and the future of our societies …

I was equally struck by Baku itself,
a city where history and modernity go hand in hand.
The ancient city walls and the iconic Qız Qalası, the Maiden Tower,
stand in striking contrast to the contemporary architecture of the Flame Towers.
Yet together they form a remarkably harmonious whole.
My time in Baku was memorable for another reason as well,
namely an extraordinary amount of rainfall.

At times, roads briefly turned into rivers,
as the drainage systems struggled to cope.

(And this all, while ambassador Ahmadzada told me that Baku has 270 sunny days per year)

In a way, this was symbolic.
It underscored the central theme of this year’s World Urban Forum:
the impact of climate change on urban environments,
and the need to anticipate and address these challenges together.

As head of the Dutch delegation,
it was an honour to exchange perspectives on these important issues
with colleagues from around the world.

I returned home with fresh insights, strengthened relationships, and renewed energy. Energy to continue building local solutions to global challenges.

As equal partners,
Azerbaijan and the Netherlands,
Baku and The Hague.
can make a meaningful contribution to this shared effort.

Let’s make this happen.
Let us work on this together.

But for now,
I wish you a wonderful continuation of your Independence Day celebrations.

Thank you.