Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

The Azerbaijani and Kazakh defense ministries have signed a cooperation plan for 2016 as part of Azerbaijani Defense Minister, Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov’s Astana visit.

An official welcoming ceremony was held on November 4 for a delegation led by Hasanov, who is on an official visit to Kazakhstan. The minister was welcomed by Kazakh Defense Minister Imangali Tasmagambetov, the defense ministry reported.

During the meeting, the two sides affirmed that the peoples of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan share a common history and culture, noting that the relations between the two countries were of strategic importance.

They stressed that the cooperation between their countries was developing both in a bilateral format and within international and regional organizations.

Tasmagambetov highlighted the importance of establishing practical relations between the naval forces of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.

He said practical relations between the two countries would strengthen neighborly relations in the Caspian Sea and strengthen security.

Hasanov, for his part, claimed Azerbaijan was ready to hold joint drills with Kazakhstan because it had prior experience in hosting joint exercises and competitions with Kazakhstan.

He stressed that such events would pave the way for the armed forces of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan to acquire mutual experience.

Tasmagambetov invited his Azerbaijani counterpart to an international exhibition of arms and military equipment, KADEKS-2016, to be held in Astana, expressing hope that Hasanov’s participation in the exhibition would provide an impetus to the development of military-technical cooperation between the two states.

The sides further underlined the importance of developing military cooperation between their countries, discussing the exchange of experience and training and a number of issues of mutual interest.

Hasanov’s Kazakhstan visit will last until November 5.

Azerbaijanis and Kazakhs are both Turkic-speaking people and share close historical, religious, and cultural ties. Both are littoral states of the Caspian Sea and possess a common maritime border. Currently, over 80,000 Azerbaijani people live in Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan view each other as major allies and partners in Central Asia and Transcaucasia.

Diplomatic relations were established on August 27, 1992. Both countries are full members of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Economic Cooperation Organization, the Turkic Council, the Joint Administration of Turkic Arts and Culture, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

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Sara Rajabova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @SaraRajabova

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