Türkiye-Azerbaijan ties are 'exceptional': President Erdogan

Azerbaijani President İlham Aliyev has lauded Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's address at the UN General Assembly for its principled adherence to international law and fairness in safeguarding Baku's interests.

Karabakh is Azerbaijani territory, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said last week at the 78th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, asserting that the imposition of any other status for the region would never be accepted.

"We have supported the negotiation process between Azerbaijan and Armenia from the beginning. However, we see that Armenia has not fully seized this historic opportunity," Erdogan said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has arrived inAzerbaijan's autonomous Nakhchivan exclave on Monday upon the invitation of hiscounterpart Ilham Aliyev.

Türkiye-Azerbaijan ties are 'exceptional', Turkish PresidentErdogan says, pledging Ankara to continue efforts to strengthen cooperation inevery field with Baku

It is a matter of pride for Türkiye that Azerbaijan'santi-terror activities in Karabakh completed successfully and with utmostrespect for civilians, the President Erdogan adds.

Last week, Azerbaijan launched "counter-terrorismmeasures" in Karabakh to uphold provisions outlined in a November 2020trilateral peace agreement it signed with Russia and Armenia following 44 daysof clashes with Yerevan.

With Azerbaijan's latest victory, new windows of opportunityhave opened for comprehensive normalisation in region, Turkish PresidentErdogan says.

"Azerbaijan, Türkiye ‘want peace, stability in region,not war," says Azerbaijani President Aliyev.

"The Republic of Azerbaijan has ensured that thehumanitarian aid is delivered to Armenian people living there," he added.

Relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia have been tensesince 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Karabakh, a territoryinternationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

"We expect Armenia to take sincere steps for stabilityin region," Turkish President Erdogan says.

Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan are setto meet on October 5 in the Spanish city of Granada to discuss the signing of apeace treaty between the two countries.

Igdir-Nakhchivan natural gas pipeline

Ankara and Baku agreed in 2020, in a memorandum ofunderstanding, to supply natural gas from Türkiye to Azerbaijan's NakhchivanAutonomous Republic.

"Igdir-Nakhchivan natural gas pipeline will deepenTürkiye's partnership with Azerbaijan and will contribute to Europe's energysupply security," President Erdogan says.

The new 85-kilometre gas pipeline will run from Türkiye'seastern province of Igdir to Sederek in western Azerbaijan, with an annualcapacity of 500 million cubic metres (mcm) and a daily capacity of 1.5 mcm.

The project will be realised through a partnership betweenTürkiye's crude oil and natural gas pipeline trading company BOTAS andAzerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR.

On 2021, Türkiye and Azerbaijan have signed the “ShushaDeclaration”, a pact that focuses on defence cooperation and establishing newtransportation routes.

"Shusha Declaration has raised Türkiye-Azerbaijanrelations to new level," says Azerbaijani President Aliyev, addingrelations are at 'highest level'.