AZERBAIJAN ACHIEVES GREAT SUCCESSES IN INTERACTION WITH NATO – MP PASHAYEVA
Author: R.Abdullayev

TREND Information, Azerbaijan
April 12 2006

Azerbaijan has achieved great successes in the interaction with NATO
under the Partnership for Program. In 2006, 600 Azerbaijani military
participated in 178 training under the aegis of NATO. The statement was
made Ganira Pashayeva, an Azerbaijani parliamentary representative to
the PACE, during the discussions over the draft resolution on Human
Rights in the armies of CE member-states, a correspondent of Trend,
dispatched to Strasbourg to cover PACE spring session reports.

MP noted that since 1997 the training of specialists at the Azerbaijani
military universities have been conducted at NATO standards.

He stressed the necessity of considering the fact that 70% of the
composition of the Azerbaijani National Army are in trenches.

“Azerbaijan is in condition of undeclared war with Armenia, which
occupied 20% of the Azerbaijani territory.”

“We have definite problems, but the budget of the Azerbaijani armed
forces grows constantly. If in 2005 the public budget assignments
for military need comprised $300m, in 2006 it was doubled.

It all releases definite problems and enables to normalize terms
of military service, first of all the soldiers and sergeants,
she underlined.

Besides, Pashayeva in reply statement by Armenian delegates on the
necessity of rapid conviction of an Azerbaijani officer, who is
accused of assassination of Ramil Safarov, at the Hungarian court,
she said, “I want to inform the member of the PACE that Safarov is
from a refugee family and his native lands are currently under the
Armenian occupation. He saw with own eyes the murder of many members
of his family and it could not pass by on the bringing up.”

Draft report 10861 had been developed by a Bulgarian MP, Alexander
Arabajiyev, and presented to the PACE on 24 March 2006.