Zelenskyy Reaffirms Backing for Azerbaijan as Tensions With Russia Escalate
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has voiced strong support for Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity and sovereignty amid deepening diplomatic tensions between Baku and Moscow.
The Gaze reports on this with reference to Zelenskyy’s post on social media.
During a phone call with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Zelenskyy extended condolences for the recent deaths of Azerbaijani nationals in Russia and called for a thorough investigation, emphasizing that “all the facts must be clarified and that justice must be served.”
“President Aliyev and I share the same view – the life and dignity of every person must be protected,” Zelenskyy stated.
The diplomatic rupture follows a high-profile security operation conducted by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) in Yekaterinburg on June 27, during which over 50 individuals of Azerbaijani descent were detained.
The incident took a darker turn when post-mortem examinations revealed that two of the detainees, brothers Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov, had been fatally beaten while in custody.
Azerbaijani authorities have opened a criminal case, denouncing the deaths as “brutal murders.”
On June 30, Azerbaijani security forces raided the Baku office of Sputnik Azerbaijan, detaining two Russian nationals, Executive Director Igor Kartavykh and Editor-in-Chief Yevgeny Belousov, on espionage charges linked to alleged cooperation with the FSB.
Azerbaijan has also revoked Sputnik’s accreditation, citing illicit financing, and suspended all Russian-sponsored cultural events in the country. In addition, Russia’s chargé d’affaires in Baku was summoned for a formal protest regarding the Yekaterinburg detentions.
Experts say the deterioration in bilateral ties reflects Moscow’s unease over Azerbaijan’s expanding role in the “Middle Corridor,” a transport route that bypasses Russia, and Baku’s growing alignment with the U.S.
Despite rising tensions, both Zelenskyy and Aliyev reaffirmed their commitment to economic cooperation.
The leaders agreed to convene a new session of the Ukraine–Azerbaijan Intergovernmental Commission in the coming months, with a focus on expanding transport and energy ties through the South Caucasus corridor.
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