Strengthening tripartite cooperation between Turkey and Azerbaijan will contribute to peace and stability in the region and the world, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
The message came after a tripartite summit between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Summit (SCO) in Astana on Wednesday.
The ministry said the three leaders discussed a wide range of issues including trilateral relations, the Gaza crisis, the Cyprus-Kashmir issue and regional and global situations including Islamophobia.
The statement expressed support for prioritizing dialogue to resolve the ongoing crisis while taking into account the principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty, and noted that cooperation among the three countries promotes peace and stability in the region and the world.
“The importance of cooperation among the three countries in the fight against cross-border threats, especially terrorism, and the joint resolution of this issue were also reaffirmed,” the ministry said.
Further tripartite meetings will be held between the three countries in the coming days, the ministry added.
Turkey, Azerbaijan and Pakistan cooperate in various areas, including military and parliamentary initiatives. The three countries have conducted joint military exercises. Turkey and Pakistan stood in solidarity with Azerbaijan during Azerbaijan’s operation to liberate Karabakh from decades of Armenian occupation.
In July 2022, the parliamentary speakers of Turkey, Azerbaijan and Pakistan approved the Baku Declaration in a ceremony held in the Azerbaijani parliament.
The joint declaration stresses the need to strengthen cooperation among the three countries based on cultural and historical ties, mutual respect and trust, and the role that Turkey, Azerbaijan and Pakistan will play in building peace, stability and development in their respective regions.