Turkey, Azerbaijan launch joint military drill in Nakhchivan region

The drill, which commenced on Saturday and will last until Tuesday, is dubbed as the “Indestructible Brotherhood – 2019,” said Azerbaijani Defense Ministry in a statement on its official website, adding that 5,000 military forces from both armies were present in the live-fire exercise.

Furthermore, over 200 tanks and other armored vehicles, approximately 180 missiles and cannons, 21 warplanes and helicopters as well as combat and surveillance drones and other modern weapons are being used, the statement added.

“The goal of the exercises is to develop the headquarters' joint plans for combat operations, to increase the level of professionalism of the military personnel and to achieve coordination of the interoperability of the military units of Azerbaijan and Turkey by developing their skills in fulfilling joint tasks,” it further said.

The drills come one month after the 'Mustafa Kemal Atatürk 2019' war games jointly held by Turkey and Azerbaijan in the latter's capital of Baku in early May. The three-day drills were held in accordance with an agreement on military cooperation between the two countries, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a statement.

Turkey and Azerbaijan have held close ties for a long time, and share, particularly, defense and energy goals.