Tehran-Baku Ties Spotlighted as Iranian Envoy Visits

Senior Iranian official Mehdi Sanaei held talks in Baku with top Azerbaijani leadership on April 1, as bilateral ties between the two neighboring countries continue to strengthen. This comes ahead of an expected visit by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian later in April, according to the presidential website.

Sanaei, adviser to the Iranian president on political affairs, was received by President Ilham Aliyev, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev, The Caspian Post reports citing bne IntelliNews.

During the meetings, both sides discussed the full spectrum of Azerbaijan-Iran relations and regional and international security issues. At the presidential meeting, Sanaei conveyed greetings from ethnic Azerbaijani President Pezeshkian.

Aliyev returned the gesture and praised the recent momentum in high-level contacts, expressing hope that Sanaei’s visit would help further develop the bilateral agenda.

Relations between the two countries have warmed despite Azerbaijan's strong relationship with Israel. Tehran, on several occasions, has warned Baku not to become a launch pad of Israeli operations against the republic.

Talks highlighted the development of key strategic infrastructure projects, including constructing a bridge across the Aras/Araz River in the Aghbend direction and strengthening the North-South Transport Corridor.

Energy security, trade, and transit cooperation were also discussed, alongside the work of the bilateral intergovernmental commission, Iran's Mehr News reported.

Foreign Minister Bayramov noted that projects jointly implemented by Iran and Azerbaijan play a critical role in the regional transport corridor network. Both sides emphasised the importance of expanding cooperation in multilateral platforms such as the OIC, ECO, CICA, and D-8.

Presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev stated that the meetings built on the momentum from his visit to Iran in February and focused on implementing the two presidents’ strategic directives. He said broad discussions were held on political ties and pressing regional issues.

The visits come ahead of President Pezeshkian’s planned official trip to Baku, which is expected to further deepen political, economic and transport cooperation between the two countries.

According to one source in Baku, this trip has been planned for April, and a joint business meeting will be held during it, and several agreements are expected to be signed between the two presidents.