Azer Tag, Azerbaijan State Info Agency
July 7 2004

AZERBAIJAN ARMY – MOST POWERFUL ARMY ON SOUTHERN CAUCASUS
[July 07, 2004, 11:04:22]

As was informed by AzerTAj, this idea was stated by Minister of
Defense of Azerbaijan, colonel-general Safar Abiyev at the meeting
with the delegation headed by the Latvian defense ministry’s state
secretary Edgars Rinkevics.

The visitor has conveyed greetings of Minister of Defense of his
country, noting that the Ministry of Defense of Latvia and Azerbaijan
have undertaken first steps in the direction of bilateral links, they
have wide experience in the field of cooperation with the NATO, and
after signing the agreement with the Ministry of Defense of
Azerbaijan these relations even more will go deep.

Colonel-general Safar Abiyev has told: `It is a great honor to
cooperate with the Ministry of Defense of the state being a full
member of the NATO. At the Istanbul summit of the NATO it has been
declared the further plans. Certainly, it will strengthen cooperation
between she NATO member-states and partners.

Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan has had with the visitor exchange
of opinions on creation of our Armed Forces, reforming of military
educational institutions and conducted reforms. He has told:
`Azerbaijan during ten years closely cooperates with the NATO within
the framework of the PfP program. Now, representatives of our Armed
Forces are trained in the higher military schools of some of world
states. Today the Azerbaijan Army is the most powerful army on the
Southern Caucasus’.

Answering the question of the visitor on prospects of settlement of
the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorny Karabakh conflict, the Minister has
told: `The conflict should be solved on the basis of norms of
international law. In this connection, 4 resolutions of Security
Council of the United Nations have been adopted. The US State
Department, the Council of Europe, the European Union, and also
presidents of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Ukraine have expressed the
opinion concerning occupation of the Azerbaijani lands by Armenia. We
trust, that this process even more will extend, and the truth will
triumph. The position of the Azerbaijan state in settlement of the
conflict is final, and it will not cede a sod of its lands to the
enemy.

Then, discussed was the current military-political situation in
regions of the Southern Caucasus and Baltic countries.