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Malta and Azerbaijan will soon sign a double taxation agreement, which Ambassador Vaqif Sadiqof hopes will lead to far more trade between the two countries. There is certainly room for improvement from our side. Last year Malta exported just $400,000 worth – $155,000 of it being aircraft parts – but imported $51 million worth.

Trade with the former Soviet republic will also get a boost from the European Commission plans to finalise a third-party protection of investment agreement, which would put foreign investors on an equal footing with locals.

This will be particularly reassuring in a country known for its high levels of corruption, which the Government led by Ilham Aliyev since 2003 – with numerous allegations about his own family’s ties to lucrative deals – is now trying to address, following considerable pressure from international watchdogs like Transparency International.

Azerbaijan is working hard to improve its image: It wants to be the “reliable” energy partner for Europe, as an alternative to maverick Russia. A gas pipeline is being constructed, prodded by the European Commision, via Turkey, Greece and Albania to Italy. The project will take three to four years to complete and will carry some 10 billion cubic metres of gas per year, with the possibility of increasing this to 50 billion cubic metres. Russia currently provides around a quarter of the continent’s 500 billion cubic metre annual gas consumption.

There are already numerous other countries considering a spur from this pipeline – such as the Balkans.

Mr Sadiqov spent nine years as the Azerbaijani representative to the OSCE and he is pragmatic about corruption and claims that the 2008 election was tarnished.

“The OSCE report highlighted many weak points. But other countries have had centuries in which to stabilise their demo-cracy, their inflation, their economy. We have only had a few decades since the Soviet Union fell. We had a long way to go, but I believe that we are getting better all the time, and international observers are echoing this sentiment. We know best what our weak points are and how to tackle them,” he said. He noted that the banking system is very vibrant and the judiciary – believed by 42 per cent to be corrupt, according to Transparency International – is being reformed.

Efforts are under way to cut through bureaucracy and it now takes just days for foreigners to set up a joint venture, for example, thanks to a “one-stop-shop” system. Even the visa system is user-friendly, with an internet site where a visa can be obtained within just 24 hours.

The country is resource-rich, with a GDP of $65 billion in 2012 – with 3.8 per cent growth - and $9 billion worth of foreign direct investment. But it is not only its considerable oil and gas deposits that are generating revenue (they account for 90 per cent of exports). The country also has banking and construction sectors that are seeing double-digit booms. The Government now wants to expand even further into telecommunications and space.

On the negative side, the 20-year territorial dispute with Armenia has left Azerbaijan with over a million refugees and no end in sight.

What does Malta have to offer? Mostly expertise, Mr Sadiqov said. The country is sorely lacking expertise in areas where Malta has considerable experience, like shipping and logistics and financial services. Malta, planning a gas-powered power station, may also consider using Azeri gas. This will no doubt have been on the agenda when the ambassador met the Prime Minister, Speaker and other ministers last week on his first visit to Malta since the general elections.

For the first time, Malta will also be appointing an ambassador to Azerbaijan – reported to be Frank Galea – and Mr Sadiqov is hoping that this heightened cooperation could lead to a trade mission.

“You cannot get an impression of a country from internet reports. You need to visit to understand what is happening there and to put things into context,” he said. “Malta Enterprise is going to sign an agreement with its counterpart as soon as we set the date. These ties are very important. We all need to work together to create a conducive framework for trade.