The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) conducted joint military drills with the Azerbaijani and Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) armies as part of the ongoing "Mustafa Kemal Ataturk-2023" joint military exercises, which began on Monday.
The second day of the three-day tactical drills, which is also marked as a "Distinguished Observer Day," continued with the participation of Turkish and Azerbaijani commando units, as well as Turkish F-16s and Bayraktar TB2 drones, which conducted various maneuvers against simulated enemies.
The Distinguished Observer Day of the military exercises was attended by Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and his Azerbaijani counterpart Zakir Hasanov, as well as Tajik Defense Minister Sherali Mirzo.
The drills, with the participation of 3,000 military personnel from both countries, are being conducted in various parts of Azerbaijan, including the capital Baku, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, and in the territories liberated after a 44-day war with Armenia in the fall of 2020.
Also on Tuesday, the TRNC started two days of joint military exercises in Northern Cyprus.
The land phase of the Martyr Ensign Caner Gönyeli-2023 Search and Rescue Invitation Exercise on Tuesday started with the participation of civilian and military elements.
The aim of the exercise is to protect the rights and interests of Türkiye and the TRNC in the Search and Rescue (SAR) area in the Eastern Mediterranean.
It also aims to assist in the official registration and strengthening of the sovereignty of the TRNC, to draw public attention to the value that is given to search and rescue activities, and to SAR region boundaries.
Seven countries – Azerbaijan, Djibouti, Philippines, Kosovo, Qatar, Libya and Pakistan – are attending the exercise as observers.
The naval part of the exercise will be held on Wednesday in the TRNC's territorial waters.
Speaking at a press briefing, Maj. Gen. Osman Aytaç, the TRNC's Security Forces commander, said search and rescue activities require professional personnel, good organization, close coordination and cooperation.
He added that Turkish Cyprus search and rescue teams have carried out 112 search and rescue missions since 2002.
"The TRNC is ready to carry out search and rescue operations in all environments, day and night, in territorial waters or international waters, at any time, in unity with elements of its (ancestral) homeland, the Republic of Türkiye," Aytaç stressed.
The island of Cyprus has been mired in a decadeslong dispute between Turkish and Greek Cypriots despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the United Nations to achieve a comprehensive settlement.
Türkiye fully supports a two-state solution on the island based on sovereign equality and equal international status between its two states.