Azerbaijan's International Alliances: Exploring Group Memberships

Azerbaijan is a member of many international organisations, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Non-Aligned Movement, the OSCE, and the NATO PfP program. It is also one of the founding members of GUAM, the Commonwealth of Independent States, and the OPCW.

Azerbaijan is also an observer state of the World Trade Organization and a correspondent at the International Telecommunication Union.

Azerbaijan is a unitary semi-presidential republic and one of six independent Turkic states. It is an active member of the Organization of Turkic States and the TÜRKSOY community.

Azerbaijan has diplomatic relations with 182 countries and holds membership in 38 international organisations.

The Organisation of Turkic States

Azerbaijan is a member of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS), formerly called the Turkic Council or the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States. The OTS is an intergovernmental organisation that aims to promote comprehensive cooperation among Turkic peoples. It was founded on 3 October 2009 in Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan and comprises all but one of the internationally recognised Turkic sovereign states: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, and Uzbekistan. Hungary and Turkmenistan are observers.

The OTS has several main purposes and tasks, including:

• Strengthening mutual confidence and friendship among members.
• Developing common positions on foreign policy issues.
• Coordinating actions to combat international terrorism, separatism, extremism, and cross-border crimes.
• Promoting effective regional and bilateral cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, economic growth, social and cultural development, science, technology, education, health, culture, sports, and tourism.
• Encouraging interaction of mass media and other means of communication.
• Strengthening cooperation and integration between member states.

The OTS functions as an umbrella for organisations like the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic States, the International Organisation of Turkic Culture, the Turkic Academy, the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation, the Center of Nomadic Civilisations, and the Turkic Business Council.

The OTS is committed to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and other recognised principles of international law, including sovereign equality, territorial integrity, and inviolability of internationally recognised borders. The organisation aims to strengthen peace and stability and promote cooperation and development among its member states. It is constructed on four main pillars: common history, common language, common identity, and common culture.

The principal organs of the OTS include the Council of Heads of State, the Council of Foreign Ministers, the Council of Elders, the Senior Officials Committee, and the Secretariat. The Council of Heads of State is the main decision-making and governing body, presided over by the President whose country holds the chairmanship. The General Secretariat is located in Istanbul, Turkey.

The TÜRKSOY community

Azerbaijan is a member of the TÜRKSOY community, which is an international cultural organization of Turkic-speaking nations. TÜRKSOY was established in 1993 with the aim of preserving and promoting the common cultural heritage of Turkic-speaking countries. The organization's name is an acronym formed from the last syllables of the Turkic and Soviet words for "Turk" and "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics".

TÜRKSOY is an intergovernmental organization that aims to preserve and promote the common cultural heritage of Turkic-speaking countries. It was established in 1993, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and its founding members included Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Since then, TÜRKSOY has expanded to include Hungary, Northern Cyprus, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as observer members. The organization's headquarters are located in Ankara, Turkey.

TÜRKSOY's activities include promoting cultural exchanges between its member states, organizing cultural events and festivals, supporting research and publications on Turkic culture, and coordinating efforts to preserve and promote the Turkic language and cultural heritage. The organization also works closely with UNESCO and other international organizations to promote and protect the cultural heritage of Turkic-speaking nations.

As an active member of TÜRKSOY, Azerbaijan has participated in various cultural initiatives and events organized by the community. These include cultural festivals, music and dance performances, exhibitions, and conferences. Azerbaijan has also contributed to TÜRKSOY's efforts to promote and preserve the Turkic language, culture, and heritage. This includes supporting research and publications on the history and culture of Turkic-speaking nations, as well as promoting cultural exchanges between Azerbaijan and other TÜRKSOY member states.

In addition to its cultural activities, TÜRKSOY also has a focus on education and science. It organizes conferences, seminars, and workshops on various topics related to Turkic culture and history. The organization also supports educational initiatives, such as the establishment of Turkic culture and language centers in member states, as well as the development of educational materials and curricula that promote Turkic culture and language.

Azerbaijan's participation in TÜRKSOY reflects its commitment to preserving and promoting its cultural heritage, as well as its close ties with other Turkic-speaking nations. Through its involvement in the community, Azerbaijan has been able to strengthen its cultural ties with other member states and contribute to the preservation and promotion of Turkic culture on a global scale.

The United Nations

Azerbaijan is a member of the United Nations, an international organisation with 193 member states. The United Nations was established in 1945 after World War II with the aim of preventing future wars. The UN has four main purposes:

• To maintain international peace and security
• To protect human rights
• To deliver humanitarian aid
• To promote sustainable development

Azerbaijan joined the United Nations in 1992, shortly after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union. As a member state, Azerbaijan contributes financially to the UN's budget and operations. The country also participates in various UN programmes and initiatives, including peacekeeping missions.

In recent years, Azerbaijan has been criticised for its human rights record, particularly regarding freedom of speech and the treatment of ethnic minorities. Despite these concerns, Azerbaijan was elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council in 2011, serving a two-year term. During its tenure, Azerbaijan sponsored several resolutions and chaired the Counter-Terrorism Committee.

In addition to its membership in the United Nations, Azerbaijan is also a member of other international organisations, such as the Council of Europe, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The country has also expressed interest in joining the European Union and has strengthened its relations with NATO through the Partnership for Peace programme.

The Council of Europe

Azerbaijan is a member of the Council of Europe, a Strasbourg-based international organisation that was created in 1949 and now includes 46 European countries. The Council of Europe was set up to promote democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

The Non-Aligned Movement

Azerbaijan is a part of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), a forum of 120 countries that represent nearly two-thirds of the United Nations' members and hold 55% of the world's population. The NAM is a group of countries that have chosen to not align themselves with any major power blocs to preserve their national independence and sovereignty.

Azerbaijan formally joined the Non-Aligned Movement at the 16th ministerial of the Non-Aligned Movement in Bali. The country's membership in the NAM is a manifestation of the balanced foreign policy doctrine that President Ilham Aliyev has pursued since coming to office.

Azerbaijan's membership in the NAM has had several implications for the country. Firstly, it has provided Azerbaijan with an "additional platform" for promoting the resolution of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Secondly, it played a crucial role in Azerbaijan's election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council on October 25, 2011. Azerbaijan's seat at the Security Council has allowed the country to play an important and active role in discussing urgent global problems and acting from criteria of ensuring world peace and justice.

Additionally, as a NAM member, Azerbaijan has the option of pursuing an independent foreign policy and establishing bilateral relations with countries without any predetermined ideological dispositions. This has allowed Azerbaijan to have bilateral relations with Islamic states like Iran and Turkey while also enjoying a constructive partnership with Israel. Moreover, Azerbaijan's membership in the NAM does not impede its relations with major regional powers like the European Union.

Azerbaijan has also played a significant role in the NAM's initiatives. For instance, in 2020, Azerbaijan assumed the chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement and took various efforts to unite member countries in their fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and its ramifications. Through Azerbaijan's initiative, the NAM held its first extraordinary summit of member states virtually, marking a historical event for the movement. The NAM also took the lead in global efforts to counter COVID-19 and initiated two resolutions to ensure fair and universal access to vaccines for all countries, which were adopted at the UN Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly in 2021.

Furthermore, Azerbaijan has called for reforms of the United Nations Security Council, characterizing it as "reminiscent of the past" and not reflective of modern reality. Azerbaijan has proposed allocating one permanent seat to the Non-Aligned Movement and one seat for the African continent at the UNSC.

In recent years, Azerbaijan has also been focused on the institutionalization of the Non-Aligned Movement. Baku has succeeded in gathering enough support for the launch of the parliamentary network and youth network of the NAM. The member countries have demonstrated the political will to continue these initiatives, with the second meeting of the network due to take place in Bahrain.

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