Azerbaijan, Iran mull military co-op (PHOTO)

Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 24

Trend:

The first meeting of the Joint Working Group on Military Cooperation between the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics of the Islamic Republic of Iran has kicked off in Baku, the press service of Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry said.

Minister of defense of Azerbaijan, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov has met with the delegation led by the Deputy Minister of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the head of the Joint Working Group on Bilateral Military Relations and Military-Technical Cooperation from the Iranian side, Major General Hojatollah Ghoreishi.

Having greeted the guests, Hasanov congratulated in connection with the start of the work of the Joint Working Group on Military Relations and Military-Technical Cooperation between the Defense Ministries of the two countries in Baku and stressed that this would play an important role in the further development of relations in the field of defense and security.

It was noted that the foundation of today's meeting was laid during the discussion of the issues of establishing a joint working group between the armed forces of the two countries, which took place during the meetings held within the framework of the visit of the Iranian defense minister to Azerbaijan in 2015.

The minister of defense informed the guest that Nagorno-Karabakh and its surrounding regions have been under the occupation of Armenia for many years, as a result of which more than one million people became internally displaced persons, adding that the enemy continues to aggravate the situation at the front up to this day.

Having expressed satisfaction with the current state of cooperation in the military sphere, Goreishi noted the importance of mutual visits of military specialists in the development of these relations. Touching upon the military-political situation in the South Caucasus, including the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the guest, stressing the importance of a peaceful settlement of the conflict, brought to the attention that Iran has always supported the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

During the meeting, the sides also exchanged views on the current state of cooperation between the two countries in the military sphere, security issues in the Caspian Sea basin and other issues of mutual interest.

The meeting will last until October 25.