Azerbaijan

From the first hours of the border closure due to the coronavirus pandemic, Azerbaijan has taken "all possible measures" to help its citizens in Turkey, including those who wanted to return, the country's envoy to Ankara told Anadolu Agency.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan extolled the benefits of the Trans-Anatolia Natural Gas Pipeline Project in an article he wrote for the latest issue of The Diplomat magazine.

In the article "TANAP: Regional Development and Peace Project" published in collaboration with the New York Times, Erdoğan emphasized that TANAP is a regional peace project.

A top Azerbaijani leader on April 15 praised Turkey over a recent mutual display of solidarity against coronavirus.

"I express my deep gratitude to fraternal Turkey. Our countries always stand by each other, on both joyful and difficult days," First Vice President Mehriban Aliyeva said on Instagram.

Turkey and Azerbaijan displayed digital versions of their flags late on April 13 on Ata Tower, one of the landmarks in the Turkish capital, to highlight their solidarity in combating the novel coronavirus.

The tower also displayed the two countries' motto "one nation, two states."

Turkey's move came after a similar gesture by Azerbaijan.

Turkey on April 11 hailed a gesture by neighboring Azerbaijan in the capital Baku honoring the countries' cooperation against coronavirus.

"As part of the mutual fight against COVID-19, Turkish and Azerbaijani flags are flying together on Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center, one of Baku's symbols," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Cavusoglu said on Twitter.

Turkey on March 30 called Armenia's attempt to hold elections in the occupied Upper Karabakh region "a flagrant violation of international law."

Turkey condemned on Feb. 26 the Khojaly massacre that saw killings of hundreds of Azerbaijani citizens at the hands of Armenian forces, marking the event's 28th anniversary.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Feb. 25 the Upper Karabakh is as much Turkey's issue as it is Azerbaijan's.

"It is our greatest desire to resolve the problem of Upper Karabakh on the basis of Azerbaijan's sovereignty and territorial integrity," Erdoğan said at a joint news conference with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

Turkey and Azerbaijan on Feb. 25 are set to sign a preferential trade agreement towards reaching a $15 billion trade volume target.

Turkey and Azerbaijan will sign a preferential trade agreement in a strategic cooperation summit in the capital Baku on Feb. 24. 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev will co-chair a High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council meeting. Erdoğan is expected to visit Azerbaijan on Feb. 25.