Trilateral meeting between presidents of Azerbaijan, Turkiye and Pakistan's Prime Minister kicks off in Astana [PHOTOS/VIDEO]

A trilateral meeting between Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Turkiye, and Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has begun in Astana, Azernews reports.

The sides emphasized during the meeting that the summit of the President of Azerbaijan, the President of Turkiye, and the Prime Minister of Pakistan was held for the first time in a trilateral format. The sides underlined its historic importance and expressed confidence that these meetings would become regular in the future.

They emphasized that Azerbaijan, Türkiye and Pakistan shared historical and religious roots and fraternal relations. They noted that the three countries always supported each other within the framework of international organizations and stated the importance of continuing this support in the future.

It was noted that trilateral formats already existed between Azerbaijan, Pakistan and Türkiye at the level of parliament speakers and foreign ministers, and a number of meetings had been held during this time.

The sides emphasized again that Azerbaijan had fully restored its territorial integrity and sovereignty. Concern was expressed that countries outside the region were pursuing a policy of militarization in the South Caucasus.

The political and moral support of brotherly Türkiye and Pakistan for Azerbaijan during the 44-day Patriotic War was emphasized. It was noted that this the people and the state of Azerbaijan highly appreciated this support.

In accordance with the spirit of political relations between the three countries, the sides exchanged views on the prospects for the development of economic and trade relations, as well as the areas of innovation, energy, agriculture, education, humanitarian and other fields. The growing dynamics of economic and trade relations was noted as a positive development, but the importance of fully aligning this with the potential of the three countries was also emphasized.

Pakistan's participation in the Middle Corridor was mentioned and it was noted that it would contribute to the promotion of economic and trade relations between the countries involved.

During the meeting, the sides reviewed issues of cooperation in the fields of defense and defense industry, touched upon the importance of the exercises of the special forces of the three countries held under the “Three Brothers” motto in 2021 and suggested conducting joint exercises of the Armed Forces of the three countries on a regular basis. The suggestion was accepted. In the field of defense industry, the sides discussed the possibilities of organizing joint production by the three countries.

The President of Azerbaijan invited the President of Turkiye and the Prime Minister of Pakistan to participate in COP29 again.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Mohammad Shahbaz Sharif accepted the invitation with pleasure.