Israel’s Defense Minister Benny Gantz has concluded an official visit to Azerbaijan, where he met with President Ilham Aliyev to strengthen defense cooperation between the two countries, the Jerusalem Post reported.
According to a statement from the Israeli minister’s office, the visit was “devoted to security and policy issues.” During the visit, Gantz also met with the defense minister and the head of the State Border Service and visited the headquarters of the State Border Service. He was accompanied by the Director General of the Ministry of Defense, Major General Amir Eshel, the Director of the Political Bureau, Dror Shalom, and the Military Secretary, Brigadier General Yaki Dolf.
During the meeting with Azerbaijani officials, Gantz “emphasized the importance of maintaining the strategic relations between the State of Israel and Azerbaijan and continuing the work toward achieving regional and global peace and stability.”
The officials also discussed the changes that have taken place in the Middle East since the signing of the Abraham Accords and the development of Israel’s ties with Turkey and other countries in the region and the world.
As Jpost noted, Azerbaijan shares a border with Iran, “which, according to foreign reports, allows Israel to carry out espionage operations and much more.”
Baku has also been a major supplier of crude oil to Israel, and in recent years has become a major importer of Israeli military equipment. In a 2020 report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, it was stated that Baku is the second-largest buyer of Israeli weapons systems after India.
Gantz’s visit took place a few days after videos emerged showing Azerbaijani soldiers executing six Armenian prisoners of war who had been captured during the fighting in late September. The video came weeks after other reports by Azerbaijani servicemen of the rape, killing and torture of an Armenian soldier.
