Azerbaijani, Turkish, and Pakistani leaders meet in Lachin

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met with Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Lachin to inaugurate the region’s international airport.

According to pro-government media outlet APA, the first plane to land at the newly opened Lachin airport on Tuesday belonged to Sharif.

That day, Sharif was met by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Aliyev. APA reported that both sides held a limited meeting in Lachin, during which they discussed expanding economic and trade relations, as well as cooperation in the fields of science, education, and technology, as well as a student exchange.

Aliyev and Sharif later held an expanded meeting over lunch, but no details were reported on.

On Wednesday, Erdoğan met separately with Aliyev to attend the airport’s opening ceremony, sans Sharif. At the ceremony, Aliyev and Erdoğan cut a ribbon, while in turn, symbolic keys to Lachin International Airport were presented to them.

This is the third airport in Azerbaijan to be inaugurated with Erdoğan's participation since the end of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020 — in September 2021, an airport was opened in Fizuli, while another was opened in October 2022 in Zangilan.

According to Azerbaijan’s presidential office, construction of the airport facility in Lachin began four years ago — it is the ‘highest-altitude airport in Azerbaijan’.

From politics to economy

After the ceremony, Aliyev and Erdoğan viewed the products produced at ‘Dost Agropark’, the first private agricultural complex established by Turkish and Azerbaijani investors in the Nagorno-Karabakh and Zangezur regions.

APA reported that during viewing, Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan had ‘invested more than $20 billion in the Turkish economy and is ready to invest $2 billion in the Pakistani economy. Work is currently underway on specific investment projects’.

‘We believe that cooperation in politics, economics, energy, mutual investments, transport, defence, agriculture, information technology, and other areas will develop more dynamically through joint projects and programmes’, Aliyev highlighted.

During his speech, Aliyev also stressed defence cooperation, stating that ‘this is one of the important areas of our partnership’.

‘Joint military exercises and military-technical projects have strengthened the potential of our armed forces. Our military cooperation strengthens peace and stability in a wide geography’, he added.

In turn, Erdoğan reportedly stressed that the ‘three countries are like three brothers’ nourished ‘by the same cultural climate and sharing common ideals’.

‘We are further strengthening the ties between our countries, which have a population of about 350 million and an economy of $1 trillion. I would like to emphasise once again that we support every step towards turning our cooperation into a strategic partnership’, Erdoğan highlighted.

According to APA, Sharif thanked Aliyev and Erdoğan for providing support during the last conflict between India and his country.

On Wednesday, Azerbaijan also commemorated Independence Day — to celebrate, Aliyev, Erdoğan, and Sharif all attended an official concert.

Aliyev and Erdoğan inaugurate new gas pipeline to Nakhchivan

The pipeline will allow Azerbaijan to send gas to its exclave via Turkey, ostensibly reducing the country’s reliance on Iran.

OC MediaXandie (Alexandra) Kuenning