Azerbaijan, Iran signal willingness to expand cooperation following high-level talks
The talks come despite Baku’s long-standing security, military, and energy ties with Israel
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Baku on 8 December for high-level bilateral talks aimed at reviewing the relationship between the two countries and charting new areas of cooperation, according to a statement from Baku.
Araghchi’s late-Sunday arrival marked the start of a new round of talks on political ties, regional stability, and joint economic projects, with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev saying the recent high-level exchanges, including two visits by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian this year, had already given fresh momentum to the relationship.
The Azerbaijani presidency reported Aliyev’s “satisfaction with the recent intensification of our relations,” noting progress across trade, transport, and energy. He said the intergovernmental commission is “operating very successfully” and expected the Iranian delegation’s visit to deliver further advances.
Araghchi conveyed Pezeshkian’s greetings and said strengthening ties with Baku was among the directives given after the Iranian president took office.
He told reporters his visit came at “a very appropriate time” and said the core outcome was an agreement to widen dialogue and diplomatic exchanges “to bring bilateral relations to a problem-free level and focus on further developing cooperation.”
The two ministers also discussed Israeli attacks targeting states across the region, including Iran.
Araghchi stressed that “no third party should be allowed to damage or negatively influence” ties between the two countries.
He warned that foreign interference in regional affairs is “destructive” and said that both sides were “fully serious” about strengthening security arrangements led by states of the region, not outside involvement.
Araghchi noted that Tehran and Baku share similar views on developments in the Caucasus and regard the 3+3 cooperation mechanism – referring to Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia plus Iran, Russia, and Turkiye – as a practical forum for regional states to manage their own affairs.
The current push for greater cooperation comes after Tehran urged Baku to investigate reports that Israeli drones and micro aerial vehicles used Azerbaijani airspace during recent attacks on Iran.
During the June war, when Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities and personnel, Pezeshkian had asked Aliyev to clarify the alleged airspace violation by Israel, calling the strike on Iranian nuclear sites “a crime against humanity.”
Aliyev rejected the claims, insisting that “Azerbaijan has full control over its skies” and would not permit its territory to be used against Iran.
The exchange had reopened long-standing concerns in Tehran over Baku’s long-standing close ties with Israel.
Those concerns were reinforced by Azerbaijan’s central role in sustaining Israel’s energy supply during the height of its regional aggression, including the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the June war against Iran.
For years, Israel has sourced nearly half of its crude from Azerbaijani fields delivered through the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline. Despite public calls to cut ties with Tel Aviv over its various ongoing crimes against Palestinians, Baku instead deepened its cooperation, increasing shipments.
Israeli reporting described workarounds in which Azerbaijani oil reached Israel via Ceyhan under altered customs records, ensuring an uninterrupted flow even as Turkiye claimed to have suspended trade with Tel Aviv.
At the same time, Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR expanded its commercial footprint inside Israel, acquiring a 10 percent stake in the Tamar gas field and securing new exploration rights in Israeli waters.
These energy links, operating throughout Israel’s genocide in Gaza and overlapping with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, have heightened Tehran’s suspicions that Baku’s economic partnership with Tel Aviv is intertwined with broader security coordination.