Azerbaijani, Turkish defense officials mull cooperation
By Mushvig Mehdiyev
Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov has met with the Commander of the Turkish Armed Forces' Special Forces, Zekai Aksakalli.
During the meeting, Hasanov highlighted the military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey, saying it is steadily developing nowadays. “That cooperation was built on the foundations of strategic partnership and fraternal relations,” he said.
While commenting on the region's military-political situation, Hasanov noted that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is a main threat to the regional stability, adding importance of resolution of the dispute within international law.
Aksakalli, on his turn, praised high-level preparedness, equipment and maintenance of the Azerbaijani Special Forces.
He stressed the significance of experience exchange between the two countries' Special Forces along with the necessity of enhancing the cooperation in training and education fields. "Turkey has always been a partner of Azerbaijan," Aksakalli noted.
Military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey was established in 1992 with an agreement signed between the Azerbaijani and Turkish governments on military education. Both of the governments have very close cooperation on defense and security since then.
More than 20 Turkish defense industry companies have commercial relations with Azerbaijan. Turkey is one of the main weapon exporters to Azerbaijan. The armed forces of the two countries have conducted a number of joint military drills in purpose to boost the experience exchange and interaction during common operations.