Iranian general: Azerbaijan, Türkiye not targets for Iran

A senior Iranian military official has said that neither Azerbaijan nor Türkiye is considered a target by Tehran following a recent drone-related incident, while warning that Iran would respond if attacks were launched against it from the territory of either country.

General Yahya Rahim Safavi, chief military adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said Iranian officials had held discussions with representatives from both Azerbaijan and Türkiye after the incident, Caliber.Az reports.

"The Turkish side contacted us directly to ask about the incident. We made it clear that neither Türkiye nor Azerbaijan is a target for us. However, no attacks should be launched against us from their territory. Otherwise, we will target those locations," Safavi said.

Safavi added that Türkiye had assured Iran that Incirlik Air Base would not be used for operations against Iran.

He also said Azerbaijan had reaffirmed that there were no US or Israeli military bases on its territory.

According to Safavi, Iran considers the incident to have been "a clear provocation". He said he had ordered an internal investigation and instructed Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs to relay the findings to both the Azerbaijani and Turkish governments.

By Aghakazim Guliyev