Aliyev: OTS countries strengthen common security

Cooperation between the security councils of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) member countries is helping to shape a common security architecture, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said. 

Aliyev made the comments in a message to participants of the fifth meeting of OTS security council secretaries in Baku.

He said new challenges, including cyber threats and new areas of instability, were emerging alongside traditional threats, while international law was facing a crisis. These challenges required a common agenda, coordinated action and joint positions on regional and global issues, he said. 

Aliyev said regular meetings of security council secretaries were important for identifying common regional and global threats and exploring ways to counter them.

International terrorism, transnational organised crime, illegal drug trafficking, religious extremism, hybrid threats and the protection of critical infrastructure were challenges that individual states could not tackle alone, he said. 

Aliyev also said developing the Middle Corridor, including the Zangezur corridor and other transport links, was among the priorities of Azerbaijan’s OTS chairmanship.

He said Azerbaijan’s victory in Karabakh had created a new geopolitical reality in the region and laid the groundwork for the Zangezur corridor.