“This statement was made to gain cheap political points,” he said. "The Armenian army is very weak. This way, Armenia is trying to gain cheap political points."

The minister stressed that Azerbaijan is trying to peacefully resolve the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

"But if it cannot be resolved peacefully, Azerbaijan will resort to another option,” Hasanov said. “Azerbaijan proved it during three days in 2016. If Armenia continues to take a destructive position, we will liberate our lands by another way."

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Military aircraft of the Azerbaijani army are ready to perform all the tasks, the defense minister said.

He stressed that the helicopter fleet of the Azerbaijani army has been fully modernized.

"We use the most modern helicopters capable of hitting a target from a long distance," he said.

Hasanov added that the work is underway to modernize the navy. He said that the Caspian countries are friendly countries to Azerbaijan and the issue of the legal status of the Caspian Sea has been resolved.

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Zakir Hasanov noted that since 2013, the Azerbaijani army conducts joint exercises with the Turkish Armed Forces

"The role of the Turkish Armed Forces is great in increasing the combat capability of the army. We benefit from their experience. The number of joint exercises to be held in 2019 has been increased to 13", the minister added.

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Reforms in the Azerbaijani army are continuing successfully, said Minister Hasanov.

He noted that the development of the Azerbaijani army is obvious. "The main purpose of the reforms is to renew the military infrastructure of the army and to acquire modern weapons. The public has been constantly informed about the newly received weapons. 90 per cent of the weapons and equipment that were demonstrated in the parade were new. In terms of confidentiality, not all weapons were displayed in the parade. We are living in a state of war,” the minister added.

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About 20 per cent of the Azerbaijani army defeated the whole Armenian army within 3-4 days during the April battles in 2016, Minister Hasanov told reporters following the opening ceremony of the new training center.

The minister said that one of the main priorities for 2019 is to improve army control. Hasanov noted that last year 5 new military camps were opened and 9 military camps to be commissioned by end 2019.

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Azerbaijani Defense Minister, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov on Monday took part in the opening of a new training center of the Defense Ministry.

The minister was informed that the necessary infrastructure has been created for the training of military personnel at the center, AzVision.az reports.

Training firing, practical exercises on the control of various combat and special equipment in difficult weather conditions and terrain, as well as practical exercises will be conducted at the center.

Minister Hasanov then toured other military facilities in the territory of the center and watched field exercises involving various units.

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