Azerbaijan in New World Order: Foreign policy priorities President Aliyev defines key directions

On April 9, an international forum titled "Facing the New World Order" was held at ADA University with the participation of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev—one of the key events in the region. President Aliyev outlined the strategic directions of the country's foreign policy and the priorities of state policy in the changing system of international relations.

The President paid special attention to Azerbaijan's mediating role in the normalization of relations between Türkiye and Israel, with which Azerbaijan has developed special ties. Statements made by President Ilham Aliyev at the forum confirm that Azerbaijan has, to a certain extent, contributed to the first successful reconciliation between Türkiye and Israel.

"Of course, these tensions between the two countries are very disturbing for us, and a matter of concern. As it is already known, though we never made it public ourselves, but already it circulates quite broadly. The first successful reconciliation between Türkiye and Israel was to a certain degree facilitated by Azerbaijan. Because what now happens between the two countries is not the first crisis. It is the second in the foreseeable past. So, during the first crisis, we played an active role in order to try to bring countries closer," said President Aliyev, emphasizing that Azerbaijan is a close friend of both countries. "With Türkiye, we are allies. We signed the Shusha Declaration in 2021, and formally became allies," he noted.

Azerbaijan has consistently directed its diplomatic resources towards balancing relations between Türkiye and Israel. In September 2023, Baku proposed a new trilateral cooperation format involving Israel and Türkiye. Hikmet Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan and Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration, stated in an interview with the international television channel i24NEWS: "We would like our friends to be friends among themselves. And, therefore, Azerbaijan is also glad to see continuing friendship and mutual understanding between Türkiye and Israel. Azerbaijan also has one suggestion and view: why not to strengthen our cooperation in a trilateral format where Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Israel could come together."

The events of the post-conflict period have shown that Azerbaijan pursues a balanced foreign policy towards both Türkiye and Israel. One of the confirmations of this is the joint efforts of Turkish and Israeli companies in the reconstruction of Azerbaijani territories liberated from Armenian occupation, as well as the revival and development of the Karabakh region, which was devastated by Armenian vandals.

However, in the context of Azerbaijan's regional policy, one notable point is that the close Azerbaijan-Israel cooperation raises certain concerns in Iran. In this regard, Baku has repeatedly emphasized that its strategic partnership with Tel Aviv is in no way directed against third countries. Azerbaijan is committed to a policy of good-neighborliness, and thus strengthening strong and trusting relations with Iran remains one of the key aspects of the country's multi-vector foreign policy.

The high level of personal contacts, as well as the visits of leaders of both countries to Baku and Tehran, confirm this. It is no coincidence that the head of state placed special emphasis on the upcoming visit of the President of Iran to Azerbaijan: "We are waiting for President Pezeshkian to pay a visit to Azerbaijan this month. We consider this visit as very important with respect to the future development of bilateral relations and regional development."

The head of state also highlighted that high-ranking representatives of both countries have already made reciprocal visits: "We've been very encouraged by the election process in Iran, which led to the victory of the President and with the messages, which we receive from Iran. So we want to have good relations with all our neighbors, including Iran. There is quite a substantial part of economic and transportation agenda."

The statements made by the Azerbaijani leader serve as a positive signal to Iran, confirming Baku's interest in continuing cooperation, while also sending a clear message to Armenia, which is concerned about the positive dynamics of Azerbaijani-Iranian relations.

It is noteworthy that the head of state did not overlook the terrorist attack carried out against the Azerbaijani embassy in Iran in January 2023: "Yes, we cannot forget the tragic events," he said, expressing confidence that what occurred was an organized terrorist act against Azerbaijan.

The President emphasized that two years had passed since the incident, and the perpetrators had still not been brought to justice: "in order to normalize completely relations between two countries, this terror act, and those who perpetrated and those who were behind the terrorists, must be brought to justice and punished."

President Aliyev's clear statements clearly demonstrate that Azerbaijan's national interests come first and form the foundation of state policy. This principle applies to any country, regardless of its position in regional or international politics.

It is precisely this sound strategy that has allowed Azerbaijan to secure an important place on the international stage.

This is also emphasized by President Aliyev’s statements that the declarations of strategic partnership signed by Azerbaijan with several countries have created a solid foundation, through which the country plays a key role as a geographical, political, economic, and transport bridge between the Central Asian region and Europe.

"Of course, planning long-term cooperation with that region, it's only enough to look at the map to understand that Azerbaijan cannot be avoided. Though, there are some in Europe, which would prefer to separate Azerbaijan not only from this process but also to build the dividing lines in the Caucasus, particularly in the Southern Caucasus. But these attempts will definitely not succeed," President Aliyev said.

The clear message from President Aliyev to our "well-wishers" in Europe reflects the current realities and Azerbaijan's determination to firmly uphold its positions on the regional and global stage.

Azerbaijan has already demonstrated this by restoring its territorial integrity and sovereignty. Azerbaijan possesses all the necessary resources and potential to continue defending its national interests in strict accordance with international law. This pleases our friends and unsettles those who had hoped for a different outcome.