The delegation led by Chief of Staff of NATO Allied Land Command, Lt-Gen Mustafa Oguz visited one of the military units of the Azerbaijani Army, Azernews reports per the ministry.
First, the delegation visited the monument of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev erected in the territory of the military unit and laid flowers. They also got acquainted with the military equipment in the unit’s armament and were given detailed information about its tactical and technical characteristics.
Moreover, the guests were briefed on the history and activities of the military unit, as well as Azerbaijan-NATO relations. The sides then exchanged views on the prospects of the development of bilateral cooperation. The parties exchanged gifts and took a photo.
Relations with NATO started in 1992 when Azerbaijan joined the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. This forum for dialogue was succeeded in 1997 by the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, which brings together all allies and partner countries in the Euro-Atlantic area.
Bilateral cooperation began when Azerbaijan joined the Partnership for Peace (PfP) program in 1994. Thanks to regular participation in PfP activities, Azerbaijan has been able to contribute actively to Euro-Atlantic security by supporting NATO-led peace-support operations.
Azerbaijan’s participation in the PfP Planning and Review Process (PARP) since 1997 has allowed NATO and individual allies to assist Azerbaijan in developing selected units to improve interoperability with those of the allies.
NATO and Azerbaijan started work on a jointly agreed Defense Education Enhancement Programme (DEEP) in 2008 to integrate NATO standards into the teaching methodologies and curricula of the country’s Professional Military Education (PME) institutions.
In 2018, Azerbaijan asked NATO to also involve the Military High School, a pre-commissioning school, in DEEP.