Health ministers from member countries of the Organization of the Turkic States (OTS) signed a memorandum of intent on Tuesday to establish the Turktransplant system, which will facilitate the sharing of information and experiences regarding organ and tissue transplantation.
This came during the fourth health ministers meeting of the OTS, which was held in Shusha, Azerbaijan.
The meeting was hosted by Azerbaijan's Health Minister Teymur Musayev and attended by officials from member countries.
Speaking at the meeting, Musayev highlighted the importance of creating a unified medical scientific field among OTS member and observer countries, conducting joint scientific research and establishing common standards for medical education as key areas of their collaborative activities.
In addition, agreements were signed between the scientific research institutes of the health ministries of OTS members and observer countries in the fields of oncology, cardiology, ophthalmology, pediatrics, traumatology and orthopedics.
The OTS, a key international body for integrating the Turkic world, turned 15 last week. Originally founded as the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking Countries (the Turkic Council), the organization's foundations were laid by the Nakhchivan Agreement signed on Oct. 3, 2009, by Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Türkiye.
The aim of the OTS is to integrate the Turkic world through shared historical and cultural values and cooperation in diverse fields, including economy, politics, education, culture, defense, security, transportation, customs, tourism and sports.
It also serves to enhance the geopolitical position of the Turkic world, with its member countries covering a total area of 4.25 million square kilometers (over 1.6 million square miles) and a population of around 160 million, gaining considerable regional recognition over the past 15 years. The OTS originally emerged as a summit between the heads of Turkic states in 1992 when former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) countries began declaring independence.