TODAY.AZ / Politics

Azerbaijan starts military drills

03 February 2015 [14:58] - TODAY.AZ

/By AzerNews

By Mushvig Mehdiyev

Azerbaijani armed forces have launched their next large-scale operational and tactical exercises attended by all types of troops on February 2, the Defense Ministry said.

Colonel General Zakir Hasanov, Defense Minister and Colonel General Najmaddin Sadikhov, First Deputy Defense Minister and Chief of General Staff of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, are personally observing the large-scale drills under the instruction of Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

Nearly 15,000 personnel, up to 300 armored vehicles, as well as over 200 means of missile and artillery troops and about 20 aircrafts of the air forces, air defense units and sophisticated anti-aircraft missile complexes are involved in the exercises.

Moreover, about 5,000 reservists and 300 automotive vehicles are also engaged in the exercises to check the implementation level of the mobilization tasks of the formations and units during the exercises.

The Azerbaijani government attaches special attention to combat readiness of the armed forces given the ongoing conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh region with neighboring Armenia. Since Armenia is still intending to derail peace negotiations through its deliberate provocations (helicopter and drone operations), Azerbaijan takes sustainable measures to prevent any incursion by the enemy.

Azerbaijan will undoubtedly stay committed to its peaceful efforts in regard to the conflict's settlement in 2015, as well.

At the same time, the country aims to be vigil against Armenia's periodical sabotage operations. In this context, regular military drills to check and preserve the army's combat readiness is of great significance for the Azerbaijani leadership, as Hasanov said earlier in December Azerbaijan is not a country to tolerate the Armenian aggression for a long time and can liberate its occupied lands by military means.

Hasanov said the main priority of Azerbaijan in 2015 is to fulfill its commitment to liberate the country’s occupied territories with more fighting capacity of the armed forces.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.

URL: http://www.today.az/news/politics/138566.html

Print version

Views: 1617

Connect with us. Get latest news and updates.

Recommend news to friend

  • Your name:
  • Your e-mail:
  • Friend's name:
  • Friend's e-mail: