Azerbaijan, Pakistan mull military cooperation
By Vugar Khalilov
Azerbaijan’s War College Chief Lt-Gen Heydar Piriyev and Pakistan’s Naval Academy Chief Rear Admiral Shifaat Ali Khan met in Baku on March 4 to discuss military cooperation, the Defence Ministry reported on March 4.
The Pakistani delegation was informed about Azerbaijan's military education system during the meeting, the report added.
The parties were also pleased with the progress of Azerbaijani-Pakistani relations.
Following the meeting, the sides took a photograph and a trip to the Carpet Museum and the Museum of Art was organized.
During the 44-day war with Armenia in 2020, Pakistan was among the first countries voicing political support for Azerbaijan. Pakistan also supports Azerbaijan in the restoration of the country's liberated territories.
In September 2021, the Azerbaijani, Turkish and Pakistani special forces conducted Three Brothers - 2021 joint international drills in Baku.
Under the drills plan, the special forces units carried out practical shootings using small arms and grenade launchers, the report added.
The drills aim to improve the coordination among the special forces units of friendly and partner countries during combat operations, prepare for operations in peacetime and wartime, exchange knowledge and experience.
In the winter of 2014, during the fifth meeting of the working group on military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Pakistan in the city of Islamabad, the countries signed an agreement on mutual military cooperation.
Over the past decade, Pakistani military experts trained about a hundred Azerbaijani military units.
Azerbaijan is holding talks with Pakistan to purchase JF-17 Thunder multirole fighter aircraft. In October 2016 President Aliyev and PM Sharif confirmed plans to carry out joint military exercises.
Furthermore, the parliaments of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Pakistan have signed the Baku Declaration on cooperation. The document was signed following the trilateral meeting held by speakers of the three countries’ parliaments on July 27, 2021.
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