Gasic, Hasanov urge boosting bilateral military cooperation

BAKU, BELGRADE - Serbian Defence Minister Bratislav Gasic and his Azerbaijani counterpart, Lieutenant General Zakir Hasanov, said on Tuesday that there is a realistic foundation for boosting bilateral military cooperation.

Gasic and Hasanov agreed that the formal and legal framework for boosting the cooperation has been established by the signing of the agreement on defence cooperation in February this year, the Serbian Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

The focus should be on "military economic cooperation, participation in multinational exercises, as well as on development of military educational and military medical cooperation," the two officials concluded during a meeting.

In view of the highly-developed capabilities of the Serbian defence industry, Gasic and Hasanov said that "boosting and expanding the transfer of technology, arms and equipment is a possibility."

Gasic noted that he is satisfied with the participation of Azerbaijani Armed Forces (AAF) members in the multinational tactical exercise Platinum Wolf 14, as well as with the participation of five AAF members in the command and control exercise Viking 14, which involved computer simulations.

"I hope that, in the coming period, we will ensure continued participation in international exercises, especially as Base South should from 2015 start operating as a regional and international centre for training troops for multinational operations," he said.

Training for Azerbaijani officers at Serbian military educational institutions such as the Military Academy and the Medical Faculty of the Military Medical Academy would enable the two sides to get to know each other better and contribute to the development of friendly ties, Gasic also...