Azerbaijani president not attending May 9 parade in Moscow When principles matter more than ceremonies

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev will not attend the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow. According to Russian media citing presidential aide Yury Ushakov, the Azerbaijani side has officially informed Moscow of the decision. “We received a message that, unfortunately, Aliyev will not be coming. The explanation given was that he must take part in domestic events dedicated to Heydar Aliyev,” Ushakov told journalist Alexander Yunashev.

Notably, just a day earlier, Ushakov claimed that nearly thirty foreign leaders were expected to attend the parade, including the Azerbaijani president. However, at no point had any official representative from Baku confirmed Aliyev’s participation. It remains unclear why the Russian presidential aide felt entitled to speak on behalf of the Azerbaijani head of state.

It is worth emphasising that Azerbaijani officials have never presumed to comment on the future actions of the Russian president.

Furthermore, it is evident that Baku has become a hub of high-level diplomatic activity, with world leaders arriving one after another. Today, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, To Lam, arrived in the Azerbaijani capital on an official state visit. President Ilham Aliyev held an important meeting with him earlier in the day, and the Vietnamese guest is expected to continue his visit tomorrow. On May 10, the entire country will commemorate the 102nd anniversary of the birth of Azerbaijan’s National Leader, Heydar Aliyev.

Given such a packed schedule of meetings and commemorative events, a visit by the Azerbaijani head of state to Moscow was, from the outset, highly unlikely. However, recent developments appear to have further influenced the final decision. In particular, there was widespread public outrage in Azerbaijan over a recent incident in which Azerbaijani MP Azer Badamov, despite receiving an official invitation from Russia, was denied entry without explanation to events dedicated to the memory of Heydar Aliyev.

Such a decision by the Russian side can hardly be interpreted as anything other than a clear and deliberate show of disrespect—both toward the Azerbaijani state as a whole and toward the member of its national parliament in particular. It is regrettable that, instead of offering an apology for the incident, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other responsible officials, as the hosts of the event, remained silent. Instead, selective leaks were made to the Russian media, citing vague and anonymous “sources” whose explanations fail to stand up to any serious scrutiny.

Unfortunately, this is not the first example of the Russian side's reluctance to demonstrate solidarity or an appropriate response to developments that have negatively affected bilateral relations. One notable case is the continued evasion of responsibility and the protracted delay in the investigation into the downing of the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) aircraft—an issue that remains unresolved.

Moreover, according to Ramid Namazov, Chairman of the Milli Majlis Commission on Countering External Interference and Hybrid Threats, the cyberattack on Azerbaijani media outlets—including Caliber.Az—carried out on February 20, 2025, originated from Russian territory. The attack was attributed to the cyber-espionage group APT29, also known as Cozy Bear, Midnight Blizzard, or The Dukes, which is known to have close ties with Russian state structures.

Taken together, these developments have made it impossible for the President of Azerbaijan to participate in the events marking the 80th anniversary of Victory Day in Moscow. It is important to stress, however, that Azerbaijan’s respect for this historic victory has already been clearly demonstrated. Servicemen of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan have arrived in Moscow and will march with the national flag across Red Square on May 9, demonstrating to the world the courage, resilience, and determination of the Azerbaijani people—the very same qualities displayed by Azerbaijanis who fought in the Second World War.