Baku and Tehran Seek to Bolster Cooperation Amid Ongoing Tensions

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council Ali Akbar Ahmadian discussed cooperation in political, economic, transport, energy, and other fields during a meeting in Baku on January 8. 

During the meeting, President Aliyev emphasized the importance of strengthening ties across all sectors and expressed satisfaction with the high-level Azerbaijani delegations’ visits to Iran following its recent presidential elections, according to the presidential website.

Reaffirming Azerbaijan’s support for resolving regional issues through collaboration among neighboring states, President Ilham Aliyev emphasized the importance of the 3+3 format, which promotes regional cooperation among Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iran, Russia, and Türkiye. He also reiterated that the involvement of external forces from outside the region is unacceptable.

In response, Ahmadian called for “removing obstacles” to bilateral projects and agreements, expressing Iran’s readiness to hold joint military drills and economic commission meetings in the near future.

Both sides underscored the importance of developing the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), which connects India and Russia via Iran and Azerbaijan. They also discussed trilateral cooperation between Azerbaijan, Russia, and Iran in facilitating this initiative, noting that Azerbaijan handles a significant volume of cargo within the corridor.

Further discussions focused on the Araz Corridor Project, a route along the Araz River within Iranian territory that aims to connect mainland Azerbaijan with its exclave Nakhchivan. The meeting addressed infrastructure development, including bridge construction and road-transport facilities along the Araz River toward the Aghband checkpoint. Both parties recognized the project’s critical role in enhancing regional transport connectivity.

The leaders also explored collaborative efforts in constructing hydroelectric power plants along the Araz River and connecting electricity lines between Azerbaijan, Russia, and Iran. They reaffirmed their commitment to fostering friendly, brotherly, and good-neighborly relations.

On the same day, Ahmadian met with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Secretary of Azerbaijan’s Security Council Ramil Usubov. They exchanged views on measures to ensure national security and discussed combating terrorism, illegal drug trafficking, migration, and other forms of transnational organized crime.

Ahmadian’s visit came amid tensions between the two countries. On January 7, President Aliyev demanded an apology from Tehran for offensive remarks made about the Azerbaijani and Turkish presidents at a December 29 religious ceremony in Iran’s Ardabil Province. The ceremony, attended by Ayatollah Seyyed Hasan Ameli, Iran’s supreme leader’s representative in Ardabil, reportedly included statements critical of Azerbaijan and Türkiye.

President Aliyev also referred to the January 2023 armed attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran, stating, “two years have passed since that incident. To this day, that person’s sentence has not been implemented. All this shows that it was an organized attack.” He added that Azerbaijan reopened its embassy in Tehran in July 2024 after the late Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian promised that the embassy attacker would be executed.

On January 1, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry summoned Iran’s Chargé d’Affaires Seyyed Jafar Aghayi Marian to protest the offensive remarks.

“The envoy was informed that the anti-Azerbaijani propaganda in Iran does not comply with the spirit of bilateral relations, the goals and tasks set before our countries,” the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a statement.  

Efforts to restore Azerbaijan-Iran relations have been ongoing over the past year, following a period of heightened tensions. These tensions included Iran conducting military drills near the Azerbaijani border and Baku closing its embassy in Tehran after the deadly attack.

Nonetheless, the relationship remains fragile, as Tehran has differences with Baku over Azerbaijan’s close relations with Israel and its insistence on establishing the Zangazur Corridor, which would connect Azerbaijan’s mainland with its exclave of Nakhchivan via Armenia. Tehran fears this corridor could sever its land access to Armenia and, consequently, Europe. Iranian authorities have suggested that the alternative Araz Corridor project would better serve Azerbaijan’s interests, particularly by accommodating heavy vehicle traffic.

Following the 2020 Second Karabakh War, Azerbaijan and Armenia initially agreed to unblock regional transport links to foster connectivity and enable international transport through their infrastructure. The Zangazur Corridor was central to this agreement. However, Armenia later revoked its consent to open the Zangezur corridor. In response, Azerbaijan turned to Iran and agreed to develop a multimodal route as an alternative, further emphasizing the need for regional cooperation.