By Azernews

By Vugar Khalilov

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and NATO Deputy Secretary-General Mircea Geoana have discussed partnership, rehabilitation of Karabakh and future prospects, the ministry reported.

Bayramov met Geoana at NATO Headquarters on the sidelines of his working visit to Brussels on November 15, 2021, the report added.

Bayramov highlighted the achievements in various directions of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership, reminding Azerbaijan’s contribution to NATO operations in the context of supporting international peace and security.

Furthermore, Bayramov briefed the NATO official about the reconstruction carried out by Azerbaijan in its lands liberated from Armenia's 30-year occupation.

The minister stressed that Azerbaijan is ready to normalize relations with Armenia in line with the principles of international law.

In turn, Geoana appreciated Azerbaijan's defence reforms and contribution to NATO missions and thanked Azerbaijan for its partnership with the Alliance, especially for its service in Afghanistan.

The officials expressed their readiness to continue the political dialogue and practical cooperation under the goals and principles of the Partnership for Peace Programme.

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) programme 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 Defence 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.

Cooperative activities, reform plans and political dialogue processes are detailed in Azerbaijan’s Individual Partnership Action Plan (IPAP), which is jointly agreed upon.