Turkish-Azerbaijani Tandem Aims to Launch Waves of Pressure on Armenia from Various Fronts, Says Abrahamyan

Head of the Analytical Center "Henaket" Tigran Abrahamyan wrote on his Facebook page: "After the military actions in Tavush and Azerbaijan's evident collapse, Turkey has significantly increased its ambitions, especially in our region. It is true that simultaneously Turkey is engaged in a struggle for influence in the Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean, and North Africa, which indirectly also impacts our regional developments; however, our immediate focus is on our region.

In the last 1.5-2 months, there have been reciprocal visits by officials from Turkey and Azerbaijan, particularly concerning representatives of the military bloc, including defense ministers, chiefs of staff, corps, and brigade commanders, etc. Joint Turkish-Azerbaijani military exercises, tactical drills, and command meetings began on July 29 and are ongoing at various scales.

Last month, a set of documents related to military-technical cooperation was signed or updated between Azerbaijan and Turkey, much of which has not been made public. Various high-ranking Turkish officials have explicitly spoken about Turkey's direct involvement in the war, also stating that they will invest all their capabilities to support Azerbaijan and create a favorable situation for themselves.

It is evident that Turkey played a substantial role in pacifying the rising tensions in Azerbaijan and in maintaining the positions of Aliyev's regime and Aliyev himself, the price of which, in fact, is Azerbaijan's foreign policy revisions and the emergence of new approaches characterized by pro-Turkish shades.

The existing political, regional, and geopolitical situation, as well as the logic of ongoing processes, suggest that the parties are harmonizing their military cooperation efforts, and in this context, the Turkish factor becomes a key element in the management of the military bloc and army transformations.

In summary, the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem aims to launch waves of pressure on Armenia from various fronts, which has two objectives: to secure maximum concessions from Armenia in the context of the peace process, and in the absence of such, to shift events to the battlefield. It no longer matters in which direction the events on the battlefield will evolve or at what scale or magnitude; the fact is that quick action is essential."