Azernews.Az

Friday March 29 2024

Experts: Commando units to be new stage in national army building

27 December 2021 10:17 (UTC+04:00)
Experts: Commando units to be new stage in national army building

By Vafa Ismayilova

Experts have described the creation of commando brigades in Azerbaijan as a new stage in the national army building. It was also assessed as a clear message for supporters of revanchist ideas in Armenia.

To recap, on December 24, Azerbaijani President, Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their son Heydar Aliyev visited liberated Khojavand region's Hadrut village to open a military unit of commando forces. As Aliyev noted Azerbaijan to create many commando brigades across the country.

New stage in army building

Turkish military and political expert Abdullah Aghar told Trend that the commando is one of the most important figures in the modern military sphere.

He said that one of the greatest lessons learned during last year's 44-day war with Armenia was the operation in the mountains and the units that were supposed to carry out operations in mountains.

"Many regions of Azerbaijan, in particular, Karabakh, are mountainous. In these mountainous areas, units are needed that will create obstacles and fight if necessary. For this reason, the commando brigade was created. They must show high intelligence, spirit, physical ability and courage, as well as be able to use modern technology," noted Aghar.

The expert said that Hadrut is a special territory in this regard. Because it is a significant area due to its demographic and topographic structure, and one of the most important victories in the war was won in Hadrut.

"Hadrut is surrounded by mountains and therefore is one of the most important places in Karabakh. For all these reasons, having commando brigades is a very sure, significant and important achievement. Establishing a commando brigade is an important step in achieving the desired success in any possible battle," he said.

Military and political observer Ramil Mammadli told Trend that the commando forces are high-alert units designed to perform special tasks.

"It is planned to increase the number of commando military units. They are designed to perform various combat missions. This event can be called a new stage in the construction of the Azerbaijani army. Despite the end of the war, the Azerbaijani army is further strengthened and modernized under the leadership of Commander-in-Chief [Ilham Aliyev]," Mammadli said.

The expert said that last year's war showed that new modern wars are already being waged.

"And in these wars, the role of mobile groups, which are special-purpose units, is indispensable, especially in mountainous areas, these units can have their say. The opening of the commando military unit in Hadrut became a clear message for supporters of revanchist ideas in Armenia," the expert added.

Transition to dynamic model

Turkish general in reserve Yucel Karauz said that as a result of Aliyev's activities, Azerbaijan has become a strong state in the region and it is decisively moving towards further modernization of military equipment, continues to improve its army.

"I note that the ground forces consist of conventional military formations carrying out combat missions and commando units with high mobility, which are equipped with special equipment for actions, regardless of the terrain and climate conditions, including night vision systems, to overcome obstacles in mountainous terrain, and so on. And also this is special forces, which is a more advanced form of commando. These forces are organized in accordance with the terms of the operations carried out by the army. It seems that Azerbaijan, given its geography most needs commando units. This became especially evident during the 44-day second Karabakh War, in particular during the liberation of Hadrut and the city of Shusha," he said.

Karauz stressed that dynamic activities are required to meet modern requirements in the areas of management, doctrine and defence industry.

"There is such a concept in military affairs: re-formalization and reorganization. Azerbaijan faced the need to increase the number of commandos as a result of the experience gained in the Second Karabakh War, as well as taking into account the borders and geography of neighboring countries. Within a year, new commando brigades were also created. At the same time, the changes also affected the management of the army, with the transition to a dynamic model. As a result, in a short time, the Azerbaijani armed forces were brought into line with the requirements of the present, such factors as the geography and capabilities of the armies of neighboring countries," he said.

Speaking about the country's defence industry, the general noted cooperation conducted with all countries that have modern technology.

"Naturally, in times of war, weapons systems can be both successful and unsuccessful. In the post-war period, these issues are being considered and steps are being taken to further improve weapons systems. There are two main conditions for success here: first, not to depend on one country in this matter, and second, to avoid excessive diversity in weapons systems, since serious problems in their coordination may arise. In the light of the experience of the Second Karabakh War, Azerbaijan continues its activities in connection with the existing drones, electronic systems, taking into account the requirements of fifth-generation wars, hybrid wars, and, as noted in the Shusha Declaration, cooperates in the field of joint production with Turkey and other countries. This is an important factor in terms of expanding the capabilities of the army, as well as the sale of military equipment to other countries," Karauz added.

Meanwhile, Russian military expert Igor Korotchenko hailed President Aliyev's decision on creating commando teams.

"The decision announced by President Aliyev to create commando brigades within the structure of the national army, the first of which is deployed in Hadrut, is an important step towards increasing further the Azerbaijani armed forces' combat effectiveness," he wrote on his Telegram channel.

The expert stressed that the step can also be viewed as "a military-force reaction of Baku to the continued presence in Karabakh - contrary to [Armenian Prime Pashinyan's obligations under the [November 2020] trilateral statement - of Armenian illegal armed formations, which are actively practicing tactics of action in relation to the conditions of guerrilla warfare".

Korotchenko stressed that the creation of commando brigades will make it possible to quickly concentrate efforts on the required direction and to work out new, more advanced forms and methods of warfare, including during special operations.

As a result of a successful counter-offensive launched by the Azerbaijani army on September 27, 2020, Hadrut and eight more settlements were liberated from Armenian occupation on October 9, 2020. The liberation of Hadrut is considered one of the turning points in the 44-day war. As a result of the Hadrut operation, the Azerbaijani army destroyed the Armenian army's large amount of enemy soldiers and equipment. Hadrut's liberation was not only a heavy defeat for the Armenian army but also a major psychological blow to the Armenians. The occupants did not recover from this defeat, and the way of the Azerbaijani army to Shusha opened.

--

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz

Loading...
Latest See more