TEHRAN — Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov discussed the latest developments in bilateral relations in a telephone conversation on Tuesday.

While emphasizing the need for mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries, Abdollahian said Tehran and Baku have a long-standing relationship with each other, according to the Iranian foreign ministry website. 
 
He stressed that the two countries must prevent misunderstandings in their relations and it is worthwhile to quickly put their ties in the right and growing direction.

Abdollahian also said Tehran expects that the problem of transit of Iranian trucks in the Azerbaijan Republic will be resolved soon.

The Iranian foreign minister spoke of the depth of relations between the two nations, saying Tehran and Baku have enemies and the two sides should not give the enemies the opportunity to disrupt relations between the two countries and concerns should be allayed through dialogue and cooperation.

The foreign minister of Azerbaijan also called relations with Iran friendly and added that ties with friendly countries are a priority for Baku.

He emphasized the need to resolve the differences through dialogue and in a calm and sincere atmosphere. Bayramov suggested that the two countries' customs officials hold talks to solve the problem of the transit of Iranian goods.

He stressed the pursuit of the release of two Iranian truck drivers detained in Azerbaijan.

The foreign ministers of the two countries invited each other to visit Tehran and Baku.

Baku claims no terrorists in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan on Monday slammed Iran for what it called Tehran’s “smear campaign” about presence of terrorist groups in Azerbaijan.

“We said this during the 44-day war and we emphasize once again that there were no terrorists in Azerbaijan. In general, as a country that has suffered due to terrorism, there has never been a place for terrorists in Azerbaijan,” Azeri Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Leyla Abdullayeva said, according to Yeni Safak

Referring to last year’s Karabakh conflict, she stressed that Azerbaijan and its army of more than 100,000 soldiers did not need mercenaries to defeat Armenia.
Also on Wednesday, Azeri President Ilham Aliyev claimed that he himself makes the decisions, Azertag reported. 

“No other country can or should try to influence Azerbaijan’s decisions. Decisions are made here in Baku, by me, based on the national interests of Azerbaijan. Whoever tried to use artificial pretext and blame Azerbaijan for kind of relations with some other countries, failed. This is not the right path. It will lead to deadlock,” he said.

Speaking about the latest escalation of Iran-Azerbaijan relations, the president stated that “the reason for what is happening is not because of our relations with some other country, it is because our foreign policy is very open, transparent, stable and as I said independent.”

Several Iranian officials, directly or indirectly, have urged Baku to distance itself from Israel and avoid being trapped by Tel Aviv’s anti-Iran plots. 

During his Monday press briefing, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh bluntly warned that Tehran will not tolerate Israeli presence in any neighboring countries.

“Iran by no means neglect its national security, and all its neighbors know this well. Messages are firmly sent to all neighbors. The Zionist regime has taken insecurity and instability everywhere it went. The Zionist regime definitely wants to see this region as insecure. Tehran and Baku must be careful that third parties do not interfere in these good relations,” Khatibzadeh asserted. 

He cautioned, “We will not tolerate the presence of the Jerusalem occupying regime near our neighborhood and in any other neighboring countries.” 

Earlier this month, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, whose support for Baku during last year’s Nagorno-Karabakh 44-day war was appreciated by the Azerbaijani foreign ministry at the time, also commented on the situation in the south Caucasus region. 

Addressing a military graduation ceremony via videoconference, Ayatollah Khamenei underlined the need for regional countries to rely on their own nations and avoid letting foreign countries interfere in the region.

“The armies of regional nations can run the region on their own and you should not allow others to enter. The events that are taking place in the northwest of our country in some of our neighboring countries are matters that must be resolved using this same logic,” the Leader said, adding, “Of course, our country and our Armed Forces are acting wisely. Our approach in all matters is to act wisely, authority coupled with wisdom. It is good if other governments act wisely too and not permit the region to face serious problems. ‘Those who dig a hole for their brothers will be the first to fall into it’.”

Tensions between Iran and Azerbaijan have many dimensions but Iran has mainly focused on the Israeli factor, one which it sees as the most dangerous element in the ever-changing politics of the region.

SA/PA