Today, the Turkish and Azerbaijani military are starting another joint military exercise, this time in Kars, near the Armenian border, in Turkey. The exercises will continue for more than ten days. “Their aim is to coordinate the actions of the two countries in a situation close to war,” the Turkish Defense Ministry said a few days ago, adding that tank units, artillery, sniper groups, special forces and helicopters will take part in the exercise.
It is also planned to test the new weapons received by the Turkish and Azerbaijani armies. These winter exercises are not new ․ For several years, the armed forces of the two countries have been holding regular joint military exercises. After the last Karabakh war, however, the attention to them is much greater both in Armenia and in the region.
Military experts remind that a month and a half after the previous joint military exercises between Turkey and Azerbaijan, a 44-day war broke out in Karabakh, in which, according to a number of reports, the Turkish military also took part. “Winter 2021 is a show of strength to keep Armenia in an atmosphere of fear,” said Andranik Ispiryan, a Turkologist. Before the start of the exercises last weekend, the Turkish Deputy Defense Minister arrived in Azerbaijan to attend the opening of a joint Russian-Turkish ceasefire monitoring center in Karabakh. Hosting the high-ranking Turkish military, Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov again spoke about strengthening and expanding bilateral military ties, arguing that it contributes not only to the interests of the two countries,
but also to the strengthening of peace and stability in the region. Official Yerevan, meanwhile, insists that the Turkish-Azerbaijani exercises not only do not help, but also question the assurances from Ankara and Baku that peace will be established in the region. “The military exercises near the Armenian border do not prove that the Turkish-Azerbaijani leadership has peaceful intentions towards Armenia,” Armenian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anna Naghdalyan stated a few days ago.