Menu
Latest
Menu
Latest
News

Israeli Defence Minister visits Georgia and Azerbaijan

14 September 2018

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman arrived in Azerbaijan on Thursday for his first visit. He met in the morning with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev. Azerbaijan "is one of the biggest markets for Israeli arms, and sells Israel 40 percent of its oil", the Jerusalem Post reported in its online edition.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), an organization that monitors global arms sales, Israel was Azerbaijan's largest arms exporter for the last two years, selling the country USD 385 million worth of arms. Azerbaijan was the second largest recipient of Israeli arms in 2016, after India, and the third largest in 2017, following India and Vietnam.

Liberman's visit follows a visit by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Baku in December 2016. Aliyev, during a press conference with Netanyahu, announced that Azerbaijan had signed long-term contracts to buy some $5billion in security and military equipment from Israel.

Liberman arrived in Azerbaijan from Georgia, where he was the first Israeli defense minister to ever visit that country. He met there with Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze, Defense Minister Levan Izoria and Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani.

Liberman issued a statement saying that there are four areas of security cooperation between the two countries: cyber defense, assistance in creating a reservist service, combating terrorism and homeland protection.

In the decade before the Russian-Georgian war in August 2008, Israel sold the small South Caucasian state between $300-$500 million in military hardware. Perhaps even more importantly, defense contractors were involved in training the Georgian military, and among Among those involved were former generals such as Yisrael Ziv and Gal Hirsch, according to the Jerusalem Post report.

commonspace.eu with The Jerusalem Post

photo: Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Liberman meeting with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev in baku on 13 September 2018 (picture courtesy of the press service of the president of Azerbaijan)

 

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged
Trending

Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

9 June 2021
Borrell underlined that the European Union will make every effort to support the peace process and to remain a committed partner to the Afghan people. "Of course, we will have to take into account the evolving situation, but disengagement is not an option.  We are clear on that: there is no alternative to a negotiated political settlement, through inclusive peace talks.
Editor's choice
News
Campaign "Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025" launched
Trending

Campaign "Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025" launched

1 September 2025
LINKS Europe is pleased to announce the launch of the campaign Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025. This will be the fourth Landmine Free South Caucasus campaign that LINKS Europe is co-ordinating since 2019, and like previous editions, the campaign will be regional, involving Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, and will have five official languages: Armenian, Azerbaijani, Georgian, Russian and English. LINKS Europe will work with stakeholders in the three countries in the delivery of the campaign. The campaign will run from 1 September to 15 December. The first part, from 1 September to 15 November, will be largely informative, using media and social media, whilst engaging with decision makers and civil society in the three countries. In the second part of the campaign, from 15 November to 15 December, the focus this year will be on the human and economic costs of landmine contamination. The Campaign will again mark 30 November as the Day of Solidarity with the victims of landmines and other remnants of war in the South Caucasus. A spokesperson for LINKS Europe said this year the campaign takes special significance following the progress in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Process and the historic meeting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders, together with the US president in the White House on 8 August. For six years, between 2018-2024, LINKS Europe worked on landmine issues in a very difficult political context, but always insisted that a regional approach was necessary for successful mine action in the South Caucasus. It consistently held that mine action could serve as a confidence-building measure in the region. Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025 will again push these ideas, but the context has changed, and the chance of success is now higher.

Popular

Editor's choice
News
Campaign "Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025" launched
Trending

Campaign "Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025" launched

1 September 2025
LINKS Europe is pleased to announce the launch of the campaign Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025. This will be the fourth Landmine Free South Caucasus campaign that LINKS Europe is co-ordinating since 2019, and like previous editions, the campaign will be regional, involving Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, and will have five official languages: Armenian, Azerbaijani, Georgian, Russian and English. LINKS Europe will work with stakeholders in the three countries in the delivery of the campaign. The campaign will run from 1 September to 15 December. The first part, from 1 September to 15 November, will be largely informative, using media and social media, whilst engaging with decision makers and civil society in the three countries. In the second part of the campaign, from 15 November to 15 December, the focus this year will be on the human and economic costs of landmine contamination. The Campaign will again mark 30 November as the Day of Solidarity with the victims of landmines and other remnants of war in the South Caucasus. A spokesperson for LINKS Europe said this year the campaign takes special significance following the progress in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Process and the historic meeting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders, together with the US president in the White House on 8 August. For six years, between 2018-2024, LINKS Europe worked on landmine issues in a very difficult political context, but always insisted that a regional approach was necessary for successful mine action in the South Caucasus. It consistently held that mine action could serve as a confidence-building measure in the region. Landmine Free South Caucasus 2025 will again push these ideas, but the context has changed, and the chance of success is now higher.