Global media spotlight Azerbaijani president’s EPC speech As focus shifts to regional normalisation, EU criticism / PHOTO

International media outlets continue to closely follow President Ilham Aliyev’s address at the European Political Community Summit, with coverage highlighting both his remarks on emerging regional normalisation and his sharp criticism of European institutions.

According to AZERTAC, the European Union-based publication Commonspace.eu has published the full text of the Azerbaijani president’s speech, reflecting sustained interest in his remarks.

In Türkiye, Hürriyet ran a headline focusing on what it described as a “peace message to Armenia from President Aliyev”, noting what it characterised as a growing atmosphere of normalisation in Armenian–Azerbaijani relations. 

The paper highlighted references to early economic and transport cooperation, including reported Azerbaijani exports of 12,000 tonnes of petroleum products to Armenia and the facilitation of 28,000 tonnes of transit cargo through Azerbaijani territory.

The same report also drew attention to Aliyev’s criticism of European institutions, including the European Parliament and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), which he accused of applying double standards towards Azerbaijan. The president described certain resolutions as being “full of insults and lies”, according to the coverage.

A wide range of Turkish media, including TRT World, Akşam, Cumhuriyet, Haber Global, Star, Aydınlık, Yeşil Iğdır, Mersin Haber, Haber 1 and Ankahaber, also carried summaries of the speech, particularly focusing on its foreign policy messaging.

Elsewhere, Iranian news agency Tasnim, along with Shafaqna and Khabarpru, reported that Aliyev accused the European Parliament of undermining the peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Citing his virtual address to the summit in Yerevan, Iranian outlets noted his claim that 14 resolutions had been adopted against Baku over the past five years in what he described as an “offensive tone”.

Coverage also extended across the Middle East and Central Asia. Egyptian outlet NDB Masr, Yemen’s Saba, Lebanon’s NNA, Lebanon Files, Kazakhstan’s Ulysmedia, and Tajik media site Khabarikhush all emphasised Aliyev’s references to progress in normalisation efforts and his call for pragmatic economic and transport engagement with Armenia.

Across the international press, the speech has been broadly framed around two key themes: cautious signs of regional economic opening, and a continued diplomatic confrontation with European institutions over what Baku views as unfair political assessments.

By Aghakazim Guliyev