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Elnur Enveroglu

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President Ilham Aliyev's participation in the 10th summit of the Organization of Turkic States being held under the motto "Turk Time" in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, together with the presidents of Turkic-speaking countries could be evaluated as one of the significant events in the history of the organization.

At this summit, where the most important issues were reviewed, the peace agreement with Armenia, which is a priority for Azerbaijan and the South Caucasus states, as well as the countries included in the 3+3 format, as well as the issue of opening the Zangazur corridor, which is of special importance for Turkic countries, was discussed among the heads of state.

In addition, President Ilham Aliyev touched on several important points during his speech at the summit. One of them was the decisive and successful steps taken by Azerbaijan in the direction of the development of the union of Turkic states.

According to the head of state, the more sustainable cooperation of Turkic countries with Azerbaijan is closely related to the period from the 2009 Nakhchivan summit to the present day. Because Azerbaijan was an active and proactive participant in all events during that period. For example, President Aiyev emphasized in his speech that in the last two years, he has had 20 visits to member and observer countries of the Organization of Turkic States. In this regard, the First Cultural Forum of the Turkic World held in Shusha on October 13-14 of this year and the declaration of Shusha as the cultural capital of Turkic States in 2023 within the framework of this event are of great importance.

Today, in addition to gaining special political weight, the organization is able to play a leading role in various processes inside and outside the organization.

In order to strengthen the organization, Azerbaijan's financial support should be emphasized. During his speech at the summit, President Ilham Aliyev's emphasis on the value of Azerbaijan's investment in the economies of member states of the organization also indicates the importance of the organization for this entire continent.

"Azerbaijan has invested more than 20 billion US dollars in the economies of Turkic states. The main part of the investments is being made in Türkiye," the president said.

At the same time, the head of state touched on the issue of establishing a joint investment fund in the near future and noted that, compared to last year, a significant increase in trade turnover has been observed since January of this year.

"The process of establishing the joint investment funds is underway. The Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Investment Fund and Azerbaijan-Kyrgyzstan Development Fund have been established.

From January to September 2023, Azerbaijan’s trade turnover with the Turkic states increased by 40 percent compared to the same period of 2022.

Transportation and logistics occupy an important place in the development of our relations. Azerbaijan has proved to be a reliable transit country between the markets of the Central Asian countries, Türkiye and Europe.

Azerbaijan is making its valuable contribution to the sustainable operation of the East-West transportation corridor," President Ilham Aliyev underlined.

Today, the activities of the Organization of Turkic States are not only based on economic interests. The South Caucasus has gone down in history as one of the places of conflict for 30 years, and this has left a deep mark with its negative impact on both economic and social life. Today, the security issue of the region is one of the most important issues, and Azerbaijan is seriously fighting in this direction against forces existing both within and outside the region.

Unfortunately, on the eve of the fact that neighboring Armenia expresses a willingness to take positive steps in this direction, some international organizations in the West are trying to hinder it. It should be noted that President Ilham Aliyev specifically touched on this issue during his speech at the summit.

"Regrettably, today, the norms of international law are being flagrantly violated across different parts of the world. Wars and bloody conflicts are inflamed. Under such circumstances, primarily, the countries’ defense capability becomes their main security guarantee. I believe that cooperation between the Member states in such spheres as security, defence, and defense industry must be ramped up."

In 2020, Azerbaijan's struggle against Armenian occupation in the Patriotic War was aimed not only at resolving the four UN resolutions but also at ensuring peace and stability in the region. Of course, the 4 resolutions mean Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, which Armenia has repeatedly rejected after the war; Unfortunately, due to the influence of external interventions, the confessions have remained out of effect only as plain words.

Of course, as President Ilham Aliyev emphasized, the self-declaration of the separatist regime in Azerbaijan’s Garabagh economic region as a so-called state was completely contrary to the Armenian PM's recognition of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. On the other hand, the separatist military formations' successive sabotage and terrorist attempts made it necessary to take a more decisive step. As a result, with the implementation of anti-terrorist measures on September 19, the boil was squeezed out.

The security of Garabagh is also a guarantee of successful economic cooperation of Turkic-speaking countries from the point of view of opening international transport lines. Also, the return of IDPs to Garabagh in Azerbaijan, as well as the safe continuation of reconstruction works, are among the important issues on the agenda.

"Immediately after the end of the Patriotic War, Azerbaijan started large-scale restoration and reconstruction works across the liberated territories. 7 billion US dollars of Azerbaijan’s budget funds have already been spent for these purposes. The allocation of at least 2.4 billion US dollars is envisaged for the following year.

We are implementing the Great Return Program. The formerly displaced persons, the rightful owners of these lands, have returned to the cities of Lachin and Fuzuli and three villages. Over 140 thousand people are due to return to Karabakh and East Zangazur by the end of 2026," the president noted.

Throughout history, the Turkic world has always struggled for independence and territorial integrity. Azerbaijan, as a part of the Turkic world, took part in the most important pages of history by showing great bravery in this struggle. The liberation of Garabagh and the parallel strengthening of the Turkic states can be noted as the most important historical processes in our geographical space today.

Azerbaijan, in turn, has high hopes for the organization and supports the joint cooperation with all its strength.