Azerbaijan, Turkey and Uzbekistan join forces in major military exercise

Three regional militaries test joint response to modern threats in Azerbaijan

Usagevpn.com – Azerbaijan, Turkey and Uzbekistan have brought more than 3,500 personnel together for a large-scale exercise designed around the rapidly changing character of warfare, including drone swarms, digital attacks, disinformation campaigns and maritime security incidents.

The “Power of Unity-2026” drills were held for the first time in Azerbaijan’s Hojavend district in the Karabakh region. Training also took place at sites in Baku, Nakhchivan and Azerbaijan’s sector of the Caspian Sea, giving the participating forces an opportunity to rehearse operations across land, air and naval environments.

The exercise reflected the expanding importance of unmanned systems and electronic warfare in military planning. Soldiers trained against coordinated drone attacks, simulated strikes on moving columns and reconnaissance missions, while also practising the use of drones for transporting ammunition and supplies. The scenarios paired unmanned platforms with artillery, armoured formations, aircraft and electronic-warfare capabilities.

Large deployment of equipment

At the Qızılqaya training ground, the forces used more than 130 unmanned vehicles. The deployment also included over 70 armoured vehicles, more than 90 artillery systems and upwards of 20 aviation assets.

Ground scenarios covered the difficult tasks faced by forces advancing through defended territory. Units rehearsed breaking through fortified positions and anti-tank trenches, opening safe routes through minefields and moving forward with armoured vehicles. They also carried out operations in mountainous terrain against simulated “terrorist” positions, cleared settlements and established checkpoints.

Border security was another central theme. Personnel used drones to identify and prevent simulated attempts to cross the border, illustrating how surveillance technology is being incorporated into field operations alongside conventional patrols and vehicle units.

Not all of the exercise focused on physical combat. Troops also faced mock cyberattacks and online disinformation efforts, challenges that are increasingly considered part of the broader security environment. Including these scenarios allowed the three militaries to practise coordination when a threat involves communications networks, public information and operational decision-making rather than only troops and equipment on the ground.

Readiness and interoperability

Turkish Defence Minister Yaşar Güler said the exercise underlined the value of preparation while expressing a preference for stability.

“We will prepare in the best possible way, but we will live in peace,”

Güler praised the outcome of the training, describing it as successful in its preparation and implementation. Joint exercises can help forces from different countries become familiar with each other’s procedures, communications and operational approaches, particularly when responding to complex situations involving several military branches.

Azerbaijan’s Defence Minister, Colonel General Zakir Hasanov, said the programme included operations on land, at sea and in the air, contributing to the combat readiness of the participating armies. Uzbekistan’s Defence Minister, Lieutenant General Shukhrat Kholmukhamedov, said personnel had shown “high combat readiness” and demonstrated that they could conduct missions together.

The Caspian Sea component broadened the scope beyond conventional land manoeuvres. Forces practised liberating a vessel and an offshore installation, rescuing hostages and landing ashore to neutralise a simulated terrorist base. Such training placed maritime intervention, coastal access and rescue missions within the same exercise as drone defence, armoured movement and electronic warfare.

Defence ties and regional participation

The drills took place against a backdrop of closer defence cooperation among the participating countries. Azerbaijan and Turkey describe their security relationship as an alliance under the 2021 Shusha Declaration. Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have likewise expanded their engagement in military affairs, defence technology and military education.

Observers from Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Serbia, Slovakia, Tajikistan, Georgia, Turkmenistan, the United Arab Emirates and Iran attended the exercise. Their presence highlighted the wider regional interest in the training, which combined traditional manoeuvres with scenarios shaped by drones, cyber threats and information operations.

Following the exercise, defence ministers from Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia met in Shusha for their 13th trilateral defence meeting. Colonel General Zakir Hasanov joined Türkiye’s National Defence Minister Yaşar Güler and Georgia’s Vice Prime Minister and Defence Minister Irakli Chikovani to discuss military cooperation, regional security and relations among the three countries.

Hasanov characterised Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey cooperation as “an important platform for regional stability, security, and development”. The meeting connected the field exercise to a broader pattern of regional defence dialogue, with the participating states placing joint planning and security coordination at the centre of their relationships.

By combining conventional firepower, armoured operations, aviation, maritime missions and digital-threat scenarios, “Power of Unity-2026” presented a picture of military preparation that extends well beyond older battlefield models. The exercise focused on how forces may need to operate when physical attacks, unmanned systems, cyber pressure and information challenges emerge at the same time.