Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz traveled this week to Azerbaijan, where he met with President Ilham Aliyev and Defense Minister Hasanov Zakir Asgar Oglu. He also met with the chief of the State Border Service, Col. Gen. Elchin Guliyev, and visited a State Border Service headquarters.

A statement from Gantz’s office said the visit focused on security and policy issues with the aim of fostering defense cooperation between Jerusalem and Baku. Gantz, it read, used his visit to “emphasize the importance of maintaining strategic relations between the State of Israel and the Republic of Azerbaijan” and “reflected on the changes in the Middle East region following the signing of the Abraham Accords.” It noted that Gantz and his dialogue partners also “discussed Israel’s developing ties with Turkey and additional countries in the region and the world.”

Gantz tweeted that in the meetings, “I emphasized the importance of maintaining and deepening ties between our countries and the importance of continuing to work towards regional and global peace and stability.”

Israel and Azerbaijan established diplomatic relations 30 years ago. Ties are mostly economic, with Israel importing fuel from Azerbaijan, and security oriented, with Azerbaijan purchasing Israeli weapons and technology. Israel is the largest supplier of weapons to Azerbaijan. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, some 60% of Azerbaijan’s defense imports in 2015-2019 originated in Israel, while in 2020, that number jumped to almost 70%.