Baku, Azerbaijan, May 28
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The Turkey-Azerbaijan link is turning into an energy, transportation and security belt, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Turkey Hazar Ibrahim said in his article published by Hurriyet Daily.
"Caspian energy resources flow to Europe via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan and Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipelines. The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railroad, inaugurated late in 2017, is a major piece in a chain, reviving the ancient Silk Road, which brought peace and prosperity to Eurasia centuries ago. Most trilateral and quadrilateral regional cooperation formats include both Ankara and Baku and the scope of their activities is growing every year," said the article.
Ibrahim recalled that on June 4, 1918, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) signed the Treaty of Batum with Turkey on friendship, cooperation and mutual military assistance, which was the first recognition of the newly established republic.
"Now, on June 12, 2018, the 1,850-kilometer long Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) will be inaugurated to become the recognition of the unbending determination, unmatched progress and strong alliance, which that friendship turned into. That is why the decision by Azerbaijani President İlham Aliyev to declare 2018 “the ADR year” was met with such high praise. It is not only history the ADR represents but also the future it has helped to forge,” said the article.
Further, he noted that some 100 years ago, on May 28, Azerbaijan declared the first democratic republic in the Muslim East.
"Not only was it the first declaration, but also the first historic decision to establish a parliament, university and opera. It granted voting rights to women ahead of many European democracies of the time," said the article.
Ibrahim noted that the ADR lasted only 23 months but the goals it set were never forgotten.
“Today, Azerbaijan is in 100th place in terms of size and has the 35th most competitive economy, the 53rd strongest army, and the 11th most literate population. Turkey is a G20 country with mighty armed forces and is a growing “soft power” in the region," he added.
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