Azernews.Az

By Jamila Babayeva

Azerbaijan and Turkey have been developing military-technical cooperation which is useful for both sides, Azerbaijan's Defense Minister, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov said on January 8.

Hasanov made the remarks in a meeting with a delegation of the Turkish Armed Forces, headed by the Chief of the Logistics of the General Staff General Atilla Gyulan Hasanov.

Military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey is based on the relations of friendship and brotherhood, Hasanov noted.

Addressing the issue of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Hasanov stressed the importance of the liberation of the occupied territories of the region, stressing that Azerbaijan will not accept the fact of occupation.

Turkish side, in turn, noted the importance and value of such meetings to strengthen the Azerbaijani-Turkish relations.

Then there was an exchange of views on issues related to regional and bilateral cooperation.

The Turkish military attaché in Azerbaijan Brigadier General Hassan Nevzat Tashdeler also attended the meeting.

Military cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey was established in 1992 with an agreement on military education signed between the Azerbaijani and Turkish governments. Since then, the two governments have has close cooperation on defense and security.

Azerbaijan and Turkey have signed more than 100 military protocols since 1992. The inked documents include a 1997 border protocol, a 2001 protocol between the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan and the General Staff of Turkey, a 2002 document between the same government agencies on cooperation in the area of war history, military archives, and museum work, and a 2003 document between the governments of Azerbaijan and Turkey on training and assistance for Azerbaijan's State Border Service by Turkey's Armed Forces.

Azerbaijan and Turkey signed an agreement on joint production of long-range missiles in 2011. The deal envisioned joint production of 107 and 122 mm missiles by an Azerbaijani ministry and Turkish weapons manufacturer Roketsan.

More than 20 Turkish defense industry companies have cooperation and commercial relations with Azerbaijan.