Ilham Aliyev received Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has received Chief of Army Staff of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Welcoming Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa, President Ilham Aliyev said:

- I am very glad to see you. Welcome to Azerbaijan! I do hope that your visit to our country will be very fruitful and further strengthen our close partnership. We are very delighted that the relations between our countries are developing very successfully. Pakistan and Azerbaijan, as two brotherly countries, are strengthening bilateral ties. We are particularly grateful to Pakistan for its very active support of Azerbaijan in the second Karabakh war. From the first days of the war, the top leadership of your country, the President and the Prime Minister, expressed their full support for Azerbaijan in restoring our territorial integrity. This is a very important element of our cooperation and a real demonstration of our brotherly relations. Other high-ranking Pakistani officials, members of parliament and public figures also supported us during the 44-day war, which resulted in a complete defeat of the Armenian army and the restoration of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict had been resolved by Azerbaijan by force and by political means.

I would also like to mention that Pakistan is one of the few countries that did not recognize Armenia because of occupation of our lands and did not establish diplomatic relations with Armenia. This is another demonstration of brotherly relations between our countries. The Azerbaijani people know it. We always deliver the message about who supports Azerbaijan and who supported us during the war. Therefore, it is not a surprise that Pakistani flags are all around the city and country and this will strengthen the brotherhood between our countries and peoples. As you know, Azerbaijan always supports Pakistan on the issue of Kashmir. Our straightforward position has been demonstrated many times. This position is based on justice, international law and our brotherly relations. We need to support our brothers in all the issues.

As a chairman of the Non-Aligned Movement, Azerbaijan actively defends international law and justice. I am very grateful to the President of Pakistan for his personal participation at the summit in Baku and his support for our initiatives within the Non-Aligned Movement. Our cooperation develops successfully. In the area of defense and in the defense industry we demonstrate a very high level of partnership. Your visit to our country is another indicator of that. We are pleased to have access to Pakistan's defense industry products. As you know, we purchase these products that strengthen our military potential. I think in the coming years we need to expand our military cooperation and plan joint military training and some other initiatives to strengthen our partnership. I am sure that these and many other issues will be on the agenda of your discussions with your colleagues. I wish you a pleasant stay. Welcome once again!

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Chief of Army Staff of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, conveyed Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan’s greetings to the President of Azerbaijan.

President Ilham Aliyev expressed his gratitude for the greetings of the Prime Minister of Pakistan and asked General Qamar Javed Bajwa to convey his greetings to Prime Minister Imran Khan.

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Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa said:

- Mr. President. First of all, it is a great honor for me to meet with you. First, may I please ask you to accept my sincere congratulations on the historic victory you won by defeating Armenia and returning your territories. I think this is a great event for every Muslim and every Pakistani. Despite the great odds against you, you have been able to restore your territorial integrity. I sincerely congratulate you. Secondly, I would like to mention that one of my friends came to Azerbaijan in 1993 and was very disappointed at that time. He visited here last year and was amazed, saying that under the leadership of your illustrious father, and under your leadership Azerbaijan has developed over the last 30 years immensely. He noted that he appreciates it.

Your Excellency, like Azerbaijan Turkey is one of our common partners. Just as you say that you are “one nation, two states”, Turkey is also very close to our hearts. The closest relationship in the world that we have is with Turkey. With all three countries having close relationship - sky is the limit for our cooperation. There are many opportunities that we can explore in Azerbaijan, and our businessmen can visit here.

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The sides also discussed issues of cooperation in the fields of transportation, logistics, energy and trade.