Having accounted for half of the world's oil production 100 years ago and also being the first country to commercially produce oil, beating the U.S. by a decade, Azerbaijan remains an important center for production and valuable partner to the U.S.

Azerbaijani ambassador Yashar Aliyev said at a recent World Affairs Council of Houston program that cooperation between his country and the U.S. remains strong. "We believe our cooperation with the U.S. is not only related to the energy area," he added.

The oil industry has been a great benefit to the country, known for its black oil and black caviar. Azerbaijan is home to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan line, currently the world's second-longest oil pipeline, stretching 1,000 miles and transporting 800,000 barrels per day. Aliyev said the pipeline should be shipping 1 million barrels daily by the end of the year.

Approximately 19,000 Azerbaijanis are employed in the oil industry. Oil revenues have brought both energy industry and domestic improvements to the country. One use of its oil revenues is creating sports and youth facilities, he said.

While Azerbaijan supports the U.S. in Iraq, on the matter of Iran, Aliyev said the U.S. should seek diplomatic solutions. Approximately 25 million Azerbaijanis live in Iran, or 33% of the country's population. "It is a very delicate and fragile situation," he said. "We feel non-political (responses) are not good, and we want a political solution to the Iran issue."

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