Azerbaijani, Turkish presidents attend TEKNOFEST Festival -PHOTOS

Azerbaijani, Turkish presidents attend TEKNOFEST Festival -PHOTOS (UPDATED)

20:55 28 May 2022 Read: 818

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of the Republic of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan are taking part in the TEKNOFEST Azerbaijan Aerospace and Technology Festival which is being held for the first time in Baku.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan, first ladies Mehriban Aliyeva and Emine Erdogan arrived at the venue of the TEKNOFEST Azerbaijan festival.

Addressing the event, Chief Technology Officer of Turkiye’s Baykar company Selcuk Bayraktar provided an insight into the festival and thanked for the excellent organization of the event in Azerbaijan.

Speaking at the festival, world-renowned scientist, the Nobel Prize Laureate Aziz Sancar emphasized the importance of Turkish-Azerbaijani brotherhood and friendship and expressed his gratitude for the organization of the TEKNOFEST Azerbaijan festival.

Then, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev addressed the event.

Speech by President Ilham Aliyev

- My dear brother, President of the Republic of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Dear friends, sisters and brothers.

As you know, it is a holiday in Azerbaijan today – Independence Day, our dearest holiday. This is because my dear brother, who has doubled these celebrations by his presence, is with us today. On behalf of all the people of Azerbaijan, let’s please cordially welcome the President of the Republic of Turkiye and all our brothers and sisters who have come to Azerbaijan alongside him.

One hundred and four years ago, the people of Azerbaijan established the first Democratic Republic in the Muslim world. Unfortunately, the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic did not exist for a long time, it broke up two years later and Azerbaijan lost its independence. It was only in the early 1990s that Azerbaijan's state independence was restored, and for 30 years the people of Azerbaijan have lived freely, in the conditions of independence, building their own lives and walking the path of independence with confidence. During these 30 years, our Turkish brothers have always been together with us. We have always felt this support, this fraternal support for 30 years, and we are still feeling it today, and Turkiye and Azerbaijan are together again today.

Two weeks ago, I was with my dear brother in Rize, one of the most beautiful places in Turkiye, and two weeks later we are together again, this time in Baku. We are always next to each other, both in good times and in difficult times, and we must and will make sure that there are only good days ahead. Turkish-Azerbaijani brotherhood and unity are the main direction for our peoples, a very important factor for the region and the world, a factor of security and stability. The more confidently Turkiye and Azerbaijan walk together, the stronger peace and tranquility in our region will be. We and the whole world saw this during the second Karabakh war. Turkiye was with us. My dear brother, the words of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the first hours of the war that “Azerbaijan is not alone, Turkiye is with it”, gave us additional strength, inspiration and confidence. The Azerbaijani people will never forget this.

Our history is bright, and we were together in the most important moments of our history. I remember that in a military parade dedicated to the liberation of Baku from Armenian occupation, Turkish and Azerbaijani soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder on Azadlig Square. We saw a repetition of this in the 2021 Victory Parade. After our historic victory, my dear brother and I hosted a military parade of the Turkish and Azerbaijani armies in Azadlig Square again. It was a celebration of our unity. It was a clear message to the whole world that we are together, that we will be together, and our strength will grow day by day.

Dear President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was in Shusha on 15 June last year, on National Salvation Day. This was a very significant event. 15 June is a holiday too. 28 May is also a holiday. We celebrated these holidays together and by signing the historic Shusha Declaration, Turkiye and Azerbaijan officially rose to the level of an alliance. This alliance manifests itself everywhere – in politics, economic relations, energy, transport projects, culture, education, army building. Today, TEKNOFEST is another demonstration of our unity, its manifestation. TEKNOFEST is a celebration of science, development, knowledge and technology. I am sure that the young people participating in TEKNOFEST will always remember this historic day. The young people of Turkiye and Azerbaijan, who have been together for several days, have become as close as a family, got to know each other, and I am sure that they will always be together in the future.

The outstanding son of the Turkic world, world-renowned scientist, the Nobel Prize Laureate Aziz Sancar also visited TEKNOFEST as a guest of honor. I remember my meeting with Aziz Bey, he told me that he had always had a great dream – to visit Shusha. After meeting with me, he went to Shusha and said that I had already achieved what I wanted to achieve in life – I have now been to Shusha. This made us very happy. People like Aziz Sancar are an example for young people – a scientist, a citizen, a Turk and a patriot. You, young people, should try to be like Aziz Bey.

At the same time, I would like to sincerely welcome Selcuk Bayraktar. Selcuk Bey is not only the organizer and initiator of TEKNOFEST, Selcuk Bey and the Bayraktar family are very famous in the world. There is no-one in the world who would not know the role of the famous “Bayraktar” unmanned aircraft in the second Karabakh war. Selcuk Bey was in Shusha yesterday. I am sure that when he saw Shusha, he got further convinced that Azerbaijan and Turkiye are ready and able to fulfill any task. Our peoples are always selflessly ready to take every step to protect and ensure their national pride. Selcuk Bey is also a good example for young people. I am sure that our young people will try to be like Selcuk Bey.

A little immodest as it may sound, I think there are two more examples today – my brother and I. We are leading our countries forward along the path to independence. I have said many times that Turkiye’s growing power strengthens us, and we have become a global powerhouse by joining our forces.

Turkiye’s successful development is first of all associated with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In my activity, I have always tried to protect the national interests of the Azerbaijani people and state, to ensure the independent policy of Azerbaijan. The brotherhood between us should be an example to all the people of Turkiye and Azerbaijan.

I would like to once again express my gratitude to my dear brother, esteemed President and all our friends, brothers and sisters from Turkiye for being with us on this holiday. I want to express my confidence that Turkiye and Azerbaijan will continue to move forward.

Long live Turkish-Azerbaijani unity and brotherhood! Karabakh is Azerbaijan!

X X X

Then, President of the Republic of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a speech.

Following the speeches, the award ceremony was held for the winners of the festival in various competitions.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and the Nobel Prize Laureate, professor Aziz Sancar presented the awards to the winners.

Presidents Ilham Aliyev, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and famous scientist Aziz Sancar posed for photographs.

The heads of state and Aziz Sancar were presented with keepsakes of the TEKNOFEST Azerbaijan festival.

First ladies Mehriban Aliyeva and Emine Erdogan, as well as Sumeyye Bayraktar and Arzu Aliyeva posed for photographs.

Then, the officials of the two brotherly countries posed together for photographs.

Following the ceremony, presidents Ilham Aliyev, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, first ladies Mehriban Aliyeva and Emine Erdogan viewed the pavilions at the exhibition area.

The air show with the participation of Azerbaijani and Turkish pilots as part of the TEKNOFEST Azerbaijan Aerospace and Technology Festival was one of the most memorable events of this prestigious festival.

Presidents Ilham Aliyev, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, first ladies Mehriban Aliyeva and Emine Erdogan, official delegations of the two brotherly countries and the festival participants watched the air show.

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15:46

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, President of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan, first ladies Mehriban Aliyeva and Emine Erdogan arrived at the venue of the TEKNOFEST Festival.