At
the beginning of the 1992, NATO officials actively used the changes in the
political situation on the European continent to expand their influence in
Central and Eastern Europe. Partnership for Peace (PfP) was taken as basis for
that policy, and was approved in January 1994 during the winter session of the
NATO Council. In May 1994, Azerbaijan signed the framework agreement on
joining PfP. It became possible after the signing of an armistice with Armenia
and the observation of a cease-fire regime by both sides the conflict. But the
difficulties of  building
statehood and independence under those conditions made it impossible for
Azerbaijan to participate more actively in this NATO program. Economic crisis
and financial difficulties prevented Azerbaijan from fulfilling a number of
obligatory conditions to conclude practical agreements with NATO.

However,
from 1996 Azerbaijan began to take on a more active policy within the
framework of PfP. Since then, representatives of Azerbaijan take part in
events held under the aegis of NATO, be it maneuvers or various seminars and
courses aiming to improve the armed forces of the country. Azerbaijan has its
representatives at the headquarters of NATO. Every year, Azerbaijan and NATO
sign an individual program on cooperation. According to this document,
representatives of Azerbaijan participate in all events held by the various
NATO committees. A major breakthrough took place in September 1999, when an
Azerbaijani platoon was sent to participate in the NATO peacekeeping forces in
Kosovo, to serve within the Turkish Battalion. 

In the military
academies of Azerbaijan, education has been altered with the purpose to comply
to NATO standards; at the higher levels, officers are specifically educated in
the workings of NATO and PfP, thereby understanding and working toward NATO
standards. 

In
November 2001, the exercise called bold">Cooperative determination 2001 took place in Azerbaijan, in which 9
member-countries of NATO and 10 partners participated. These exercises were
another important step toward the Azerbaijan’s integration into the
Euro-Atlantic security structures. In 2001 alone, Azerbaijan participated in
more than 250 NATO events.

Recently,
the President of NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly Rafael Estrelle visited
Azerbaijan and met with the President, the Speaker of Parliament, and with the
ministers of Defense and Foireign Affairs. Estrelle’s visit confirms the
ever closer links between Azerbaijan and NATO. Unlike most other states of the
CIS, Azerbaijan has openly declared the importance it attaches to NATO’s
efforts to strengthen European security.

Speaking
in Baku, Estrelle stated that NATO intended to undertake efforts to strengthen
security in Europe and in the wider world in the following years. Negotiations
in Baku showed that Azerbaijan is ready to fulfill its obligations within the
PfP program. In the words of the NATO official, the visit was helpful in
receiving trustworthy information on the situation in the Caucasus, and to
strengthen and expand the ties between NATO and the region. The main topics
discussed were the perspectives of the development of the relations between
the alliance and Azerbaijan within the framework of this program, and security
issues including regional, and specifically Caucasian problems.

On
January 18, Azerbaijan’s President Heydar Aliyev received the guest and
assessed the visit of the NATO PA delegation as a logical step in the in the
light of the national interest of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan considers itself as
part of Europe and intends to intensify its participation in European
integration processes, in particular in its security structures. According to
the President, Azerbaijan is not content with the role of permanent observer
in NATO’s PA and aspires to be accepted as an associate member of this
organization. During the meeting, Estrelle expressed regret for the
indifference of international organizations on settling the Armenia-Azerbaijan
conflict and for the lack of implementation of the well-known resolutions of
the United Nations Security Council. In his words, NATO views this conflict
very seriously and will pay particular attention to its peaceful settlement.
He mentioned NATO plans to expand its cooperation with the countries of the
South Caucasus to ensure the safety and stability in the region.

President
Aliyev stressed that the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict creates huge problems for
Azerbaijan, which was forced into this conflict. He noted that Azerbaijan
positively assessed the prospects of NATO’s increasing involvement in
solving this conflict by peaceful means.

It
was also announced that at the beginning of March, experts of the U.S. defense
department would arrive in Baku. This became possible after the waiver to
section 907 of the Freedom Support Act. The lifting of the sanctions imposed
against Azerbaijan will allow the U.S. administration to render military aid
to the country, which will help Washington in its struggle with international
terrorism. As reported by the local mass media, American military experts will
arrive to get acquainted with the local situation and work out a cooperation
plan, which is scheduled to be approved by the two heads of state after that.

Gulnara
Ismailova