Army

Army

Azerbaijan, NATO mull military cooperation

07 September 2017 12:10 (UTC +04:00)

Colonel General, Najmaddin Sadikov, Chief of the General Staff of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, First Deputy Defense Minister met with a delegation led by General Petr Pavel, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee on Sept. 7, the Defense Ministry told APA.

Sadikov hailed the successful development of military relations between Azerbaijan and NATO. He spoke about military cooperation between Azerbaijan and NATO, including the activities of the Azerbaijan Armed Forces within the framework of various NATO programs, as well as the contribution of Azerbaijan to the NATO-led non-combat Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan.

Sadikov especially noted the merits of national leader Heydar Aliyev and Azerbaijani President, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Ilham Aliyev in establishing fruitful and trusting relations between Azerbaijan and NATO.

Touching upon the military-political situation in the region, Sadikov stressed the importance of resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan in line with the norms of international law. Highly appreciating NATO's position on the supporting territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan, the chief of the General Staff expressed confidence that the Alliance will continue its efforts in this issue.

General P. Pavel, in turn, especially noted that Azerbaijan is a reliable partner on Alliance, highly appreciating the country’s participation in the fight against terrorism, the significant contribution in providing airspace to cargo transportation for peacekeeping operations, including the high level of professionalism of Azerbaijani peacekeepers in Afghanistan.

Having expressed satisfaction with the visit to Azerbaijan, the guest also expressed his deep gratitude to the leadership of Azerbaijan for assistance in holding in Baku a bilateral meeting with General Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.