Azerbaijan, Turkey eye military situation in region
By Mushvig Mehdiyev
Top military officials of Azerbaijan and Turkey discussed the military and political situation in the region on February 10.
Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov, Defense Minister, received a delegation led by General Burhanettin Akti, a senior official of Turkey’s National Defense Ministry. The two sides held talks over several issues including the mutual military ties.
The sides mainly focused on the region's existing military and political situation alongside the measures taken for the development of the armed forces of Azerbaijan and Turkey.
The parties exchanged views on the prospects for further deepening relations between the armed forces of the two countries.
The immediate settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was also top on the meeting's agenda.
Brigadier General Hasan Nevzat Tasdeler, Turkish military attaché to Azerbaijan also attended the meeting.
Azerbaijan and Turkey are strategic allies in many fields, including the military. The military cooperation between these two neighboring nations dates back to 1992 when they signed an agreement on military education.
Since then, the Azerbaijani and Turkish governments have been closely cooperating in defense and security fields.
In December 2010, both countries signed a range of treaties that make each other a guarantor in case of any attack by third forces.
More than 20 Turkish defense companies have cooperation and commercial relations with Azerbaijan
The Azerbaijani and Turkish Air Forces hold regular drills as part of the military cooperation between the two countries. In the last September and October, the Turkish air forces co-conducted combat firings and flights as part of joint military drills with their Azerbaijani counterparts.
Turkey is unequivocally supporting Azerbaijan's position over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, refusing to open its borders with Armenia until the Armenian troops withdraw from the occupied territory Azerbaijani lands.
Turkish rulers have always reiterated that there could be no Turkish-Armenian rapprochement as long as the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is resolved pursuant to the international law, which acknowledges the region as part of Azerbaijan's internationally recognized territory.
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