Turkey and Azerbaijan plan to form a combined army

RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS - In Brief 28 Jul 2021 by Alex Teddy
On July 28 it was announced in the Turkish Parliament that the two neighbors are creating a joint army. A joint military drill is currently ongoing.The two countries speak languages that are almost identical. They have been cooperating closely for 30 years but now they intend to further expand their close military ties. In March 2021 the two countries signed a trade agreement. They are closed to free trade between each other.Turkish support was crucial to Azerbaijan's victory over Armenia in 2020. On July 27, Ankara warned that Armenian shelling of Azerbaijan could yet spark a regional war.President Erdogan has visited Azerbaijan several times in the last 12 months. Russia will dislike the news of a Turkic Army (i.e., shared between Azerbaijan and Turkey). A cordial relationship between these brother nations was unavoidable. Moscow could tolerate that. But Russia perceives itself as the regional hegemon and does not like being squeezed out.Armenia is totally reliant on Russia. A poverty-stricken, landlocked country of 3 million people bereft of natural resources, it desperately needs Russian troops to stay there. The Armenians also need remittances from half a million Armenian workers in Russia. The announcement about Turkic Army is likely to increase Russian assistance to Armenia. The half a million Azerbaijani workers in Russia could find themselves disadvantaged. Azerbaijan has Turkish Bayrakat TB2 drones that it used so well against Armenia in 2020. There is now a factory in Azerbaijan to manufacture these drones.

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