TURKISH MILITARY PREPARING AZERBAIJAN FOR NATO

Today.Az
03 April 2007 [15:02]

The Turkish military will continue to give assistance to Azerbaijan’s
military. In order to endorse Azerbaijan’s efforts for NATO membership,
the two countries will establish a joint commission.

Having been in territorial conflict with its neighbor Armenia over
Nagorno Karabakh since 1993, Azerbaijan’s military is preparing for
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) membership by 2015 with the
help of its traditional ally and NATO member Turkey. The Turkish Armed
Forces (TSK) and the Azerbaijan Armed Forces (ASK) have intensified
their co-operation in the last months with high-level visits and
another delegation from the Office of the Chief of General Staff will
pay a visit to Baku in April.

The Turkish delegation will meet with their counterparts in late
April, the Turkish Daily News has learned. Azerbaijan is asking
the Turkish military to give it more assistance on meeting NATO’s
standards for military training, know-how and usage of technology in
military operations.

After the visit, the two militaries are expected to establish a joint
commission to co-ordinate the ASK’s preparations for NATO membership.

With strong cultural ties to Azerbaijan, Turkey will continue to
hasten the reform process. Turkey is also planning to help Azerbaijan
establish an army company that meets NATO standards, Gen. Ergin Saygun,
deputy chief of the Turkish General Staff, announced during his visit
to Baku in February.

Baku decided to increase the number of Azerbaijan’s troops serving
with NATO in Afghanistan in March. In 2005, Azerbaijan had 22 troops
in Afghanistan, according to NATO figures.

Azerbaijan’s participation in NATO’s Individual Partnership Action
Plan (IPAP), a set of requirements that must be met by alliance
candidate-members, is scheduled to end in 2007. Azerbaijan aims
to continue the IPAP program for the next two-years. President of
Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev views NATO integration as a top foreign policy
priority for Azerbaijan, and a new strategic doctrine is expected to
be adopted by the Azerbaijan Parliament by mid-2007.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress