Security cooperation between Azerbaijan and Pakistan dates back a few years before the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh War took place and has included joint exercises and mountain warfare training for Azerbaijani Special Forces units in Pakistan. The accompanying excerpted articles report on a couple of recent meetings between Azerbaijani and Pakistani officials on further security cooperation activities. While officials from both sides have met a few times since the 2020 war ended, these meetings focused on future security cooperation activities.
The first article from Azerbaijani based semi-independent news agency Trend, reports on how Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev recently met with Pakistan’s Chief of the Army Staff, General Qamar Javed Bajwa. President Aliyev stated how “Pakistan is one of the few countries that did not recognize Armenia and did not establish diplomatic ties with it because of the occupation of our land.” In addition, earlier this year the governments of Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Pakistan issued a declaration to increase cooperation trilaterally. This included support for ongoing conflicts each are involved in as well as security cooperation. Pakistan does not have the history of conflict or poor relations that Azerbaijan and Turkey have with Armenia, but its increasing security cooperation with Azerbaijan could put it further into a position against Armenia.
The other articles from Trend report on the results of a couple of the meetings Azerbaijani officials had with General Bajwa. The first article notes that in Bajwa’s meeting with Azerbaijan’s Defense Minister, Colonel-General Hasanov, the two sides “agreed on the joint use of mountain training facilities and joint exercises.” The second article mentions that Bajwa also met with “the head of the State Border Guards Service, Colonel-General Elchin Guliyev.” It notes how Guliyev is looking “to protect the state border in the liberated territories and activities to create the necessary infrastructure” and that Bajwa responded “that Pakistan is ready to share its experience in creating the necessary border infrastructure as well as experience in mine clearance.” The agreement between Pakistan and Azerbaijan’s defense ministry shows that both sides will continue existing security cooperation, but the potential cooperation between Pakistan and Azerbaijan’s border guards is a new development. As Azerbaijan continues to deal with border issues in Nagorno Karabakh (see: “The Impact of Territorial Changes in Nagorno Karabakh,” OE Watch, July
2021), Pakistan’s assistance in border security could play a role in the near future.
Source: “Президент Ильхам Алиев принял командира Сухопутных войск Пакистана (President Ilham Aliev met with the Chief of the Army Staff of Pakistan),” Trend (a semi-independent news agency based in Azerbaijan), 21 June 2021. https://www.trend.az/azerbaijan/politics/3443091.html
On 21 June, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, met with the Chief of the Army Staff of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, General Qamar Javed Bajwa…President Aliyev, welcoming General Bajwa, said: “…we are grateful for the very active support provided by Pakistan to Azerbaijan during the Second Karabakh War…I would also like to note that Pakistan is one of the few countries that did not recognize Armenia and did not establish diplomatic ties with it because of the occupation of our land…
Source: “Азербайджан и Пакистан договорились о горной подготовке военнослужащих и проведении совместных учений (Azerbaijan and Pakistan have agreed on mountain training of service members and carrying out joint exercises),” Trend (a semi-independent news agency based in Azerbaijan), 21 June 2021. https://www.trend.az/azerbaijan/politics/3443323.html
Azerbaijan and Pakistan have agreed on the joint use of mountain training facilities and joint exercises…The agreement was made at the meeting today of Azerbaijan’s Defense Minister Colonel-General Zakir Hasanov with a delegation led by Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa…
Source: “Азербайджан и Пакистан обсудили совместное сотрудничество в сфере пограничной безопасности (Azerbaijan and Pakistan discussed joint cooperation in the area of border security),” Trend (a semi-independent news agency based in Azerbaijan), 22 June 2021. https://www.trend.az/azerbaijan/politics/3443849.html
…On June 22, the head of the State Border Guards Service, Colonel-General Elchin Guliyev, met with a delegation from the Chief of the Army Staff of Pakistan, General Qamar Javed Bajwa…
(General Guliyev) also informed the members of the Pakistani delegation about the work to protect the state border in the liberated territories and activities to create the necessary infrastructure…
General Bajwa said that Pakistan is ready to share its experience in creating the necessary border infrastructure as well as experience in mine clearance…
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