NATO open for Azerbaijan`s admission, envoy says
Azerbaijan may be admitted to NATO and is one of the
key candidates for membership, the alliance`s representative on the
South Caucasus and Central Asia has said.
``It is clear that Azerbaijan is one of the main candidates for NATO membership. We are therefore developing broad cooperation, and will continue it,`` Robert Simmons told the Baku-based ANS TV channel.
However, Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said earlier that Azerbaijan was not seeking NATO admission.
``A number of countries sometimes interpret cooperation with NATO as a readiness to enter the alliance. But Azerbaijan is [merely] trying to increase the quality of its relations with the organization through this collaboration,`` Azimov said.
Baku and Brussels have been cooperating within NATO`s Partnership for Peace (PfP) program since 1994. Also, the South Caucasus republic is collaborating with the bloc within the NATO Individual Partnership Plan. IPAP, signed in 2005, envisions improvements in the military field, political and economic reforms, and other areas.
``It is clear that Azerbaijan is one of the main candidates for NATO membership. We are therefore developing broad cooperation, and will continue it,`` Robert Simmons told the Baku-based ANS TV channel.
However, Deputy Foreign Minister Araz Azimov said earlier that Azerbaijan was not seeking NATO admission.
``A number of countries sometimes interpret cooperation with NATO as a readiness to enter the alliance. But Azerbaijan is [merely] trying to increase the quality of its relations with the organization through this collaboration,`` Azimov said.
Baku and Brussels have been cooperating within NATO`s Partnership for Peace (PfP) program since 1994. Also, the South Caucasus republic is collaborating with the bloc within the NATO Individual Partnership Plan. IPAP, signed in 2005, envisions improvements in the military field, political and economic reforms, and other areas.
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