NATO concerned about Azerbaijan’s "slow" military reform – paper

Ayna, Baku
21 Feb 07

NATO is concerned about the "slow pace" of reforms in the Azerbaijan
military, the independent Azerbaijani-language daily Ayna has
reported, citing unnamed sources in Brussels.

Ayna said that a group of NATO experts who visited Baku on 12-16
February to look into the implementation of the Individual Partnership
Action Plan (IPAP) also expressed dissatisfaction over the
"efficiency" of Azerbaijan’s military reforms, the report said.

"NATO strategists think that Azerbaijan should cooperate with the
alliance not just for the sake of cooperation… NATO puts its
conditions: if Baku is interested in cooperation with NATO, it should
try and cooperate until the end. ‘Incomplete’ cooperation could only
harm the general process," the paper said.

According to Ayna, NATO wants Azerbaijan to bring its military schools
in line with NATO standards; adopt its national security strategy and
military doctrine; upgrade its equipment; ensure transparency in
military planning and spending; and modernize its military
infrastructure, among others.