Azerbaijan marks the 107th anniversary of the Armed Forces creation

June 26, 2025 marks the 107th anniversary of the creation of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan.

On June 26, 1918, by decree of the Council of Ministers of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR), the first regular military unit was created - the Separate Azerbaijani Corps. The Declaration of Independence, adopted on May 28 of the same year, noted that Azerbaijan should have a regular army, create its own Armed Forces to protect against foreign intervention and neutralize internal enemy forces. The government set the task of creating an army of 25,000 people. On August 1, the Ministry of War of Azerbaijan was established, and Khosrov bek Sultanov was appointed as the first Minister of Defense.

The first military parade in Azerbaijan took place in 1919 in Baku on the territory of the current Museum Center. In a short time, the National Army, together with the Caucasian Islamic Army, managed to liberate Baku and the surrounding areas from Armenian-Bolshevik occupation. After the Soviet occupation of Azerbaijan in 1920, the Ministry of War was abolished, and 15 army generals were executed by the Bolsheviks.

After the restoration of state independence in 1991, a decision was made to create the Azerbaijani army. According to the decree of national leader Heydar Aliyev dated May 22, 1998, June 26 was declared the Day of the Armed Forces.

On June 26, 2011, a military parade of the modern Azerbaijani army was held in Baku on the occasion of the Armed Forces Day and the 20th anniversary of the restoration of independence, with the participation of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, President Ilham Aliyev.

In 2013, the military parade was dedicated to the 95th anniversary of the Armed Forces, and in 2018 - to the 100th anniversary of the Azerbaijani army.

In recent years, large financial resources have been allocated for building the army in Azerbaijan and equipping it with the most modern weapons. Currently, the Armed Forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan are considered the most powerful in the South Caucasus region.

The Azerbaijani army proved its strength in April 2016. On April 2, in response to enemy provocations, the Azerbaijani army launched a lightning counteroffensive and inflicted a heavy defeat on the enemy, liberating more than 2,000 hectares of occupied territories in the Fuzuli, Jabrayil, and Aghdara districts. Thousands more hectares came under the complete control of the Azerbaijani army, which managed to give our people the joy of victory.

One of the most important results of this military operation, which the Azerbaijani army carried out with honor thanks to the constant control, attention, and care of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, as well as the correct actions of the Ministry of Defense leadership, was the significant superiority of our armed forces over the Armenian ones in terms of moral and psychological attitude, fighting spirit, social solidarity, technical support, armament, and professionalism, and the enemy's full awareness of this superiority. Armenian society clearly felt that it was lagging behind and losing in this process.

The next success of the Azerbaijani army was achieved two years after the April battles - in May 2018 with the victory in Gunnut. As a result of this successful operation, more than 11,000 hectares of territory of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic and the village of Gunnut in the Sharur district were liberated from the enemy, and advantageous positions along the state border came under the control of the Azerbaijani army. Thus, the operation