Türkiye-Azerbaijan defence diplomacy on display at TEKNOFEST 2025

Turkish National Defence Minister Yashar Güler has met with Azerbaijani Deputy Defence Minister Agil Gurbanov, who is on a visit to Northern Cyprus, marking a significant diplomatic engagement between the two countries.

The meeting took place as part of the ongoing TEKNOFEST festival in Lefkosha, the Turkish Ministry of National Defence reported via its official social media account X, Caliber.Az reports.

Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti’nde bulunan Millî Savunma Bakanı Yaşar Güler, #TEKNOFEST dolayısıyla Lefkoşa’ya gelen kardeş Azerbaycan’ın Savunma Bakan Yardımcısı Aqil Gurbanov’u kabul etti.#MillîSavunmaBakanlığı #YaşarGüler pic.twitter.com/WLBqumSjla

— T.C. Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) May 3, 2025

The 11th International Aviation, Space and Technology Festival (TEKNOFEST) officially opened in Lefkosha, the capital of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), drawing tens of thousands of attendees from 22 countries.

Organised by the Türkiye Technology Team Foundation and Türkiye’s Ministry of Industry and Technology, and supported by the TRNC Presidency, the event is being held at Ercan Airport from 1–4 May.

This year’s edition features 1,083 finalists across 268 teams competing in six main categories and 13 subcategories, ranging from social innovation and drone championships to tourism technologies and flying car simulations.

The TRNC is represented by 20 teams, while other finalists hail from Türkiye, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Indonesia, and Pakistan.

Air shows by the Turkish Stars, SOLOTÜRK, and the Gendarmerie Steel Wings are among the festival’s highlights, alongside displays of Türkiye’s domestically produced aerial technologies, including the Bayraktar drones, HÜRKUŞ, and ATAK helicopter.

By Vafa Guliyeva