🇷🇺 🇦🇿 Crisis in Russia-Azerbaijan Relations?

Let's Break it Down:

The situation in relations between Azerbaijan and Russia continues to escalate. Following the detention of members of an Azerbaijani organized crime group (OCG) in Yekaterinburg, mass detentions of Russians took place in Baku, including tourists, journalists, and IT specialists.

How Did It Start?

➖ On June 28, an FSB operation took place in Yekaterinburg, during which operatives detained over 50 representatives of an Azerbaijani OCG in connection with murders committed in the 2000s.

➖ The detention of the criminals caused sharp discontent among Azerbaijani state agencies, which accused Russia of unlawful detentions and canceled almost all events with Russian representatives.

➖ Subsequently, on June 30 in Baku, employees of the "Sputnik" and "Ruptly" editorial offices were detained. The next day, two groups of Russians were detained, who were presented as members of OCGs. Azerbaijani security forces accuse them of working for the FSB, fraud, and drug trafficking. The detainees were beaten and subjected to abuse by Azerbaijani security forces.

➖ In response to Baku's sharp moves, the Azerbaijani Ambassador was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry (MID) on July 1, where he stated that the detentions of Russians fully comply with Azerbaijani law.

➖ Later that same evening in Yekaterinburg, the leader of the OCG diaspora, Shahin Shykhlinsky, was detained, but he was soon released as a witness.

➖ Then, the Russian MID summoned the Azerbaijani Ambassador again, lodged a strong protest, and recommended Russians refrain from traveling to Azerbaijan.

➖ In turn, the Azerbaijani MID summoned the Russian Ambassador and also expressed a protest to him.

❗️ The struggle to free criminals by taking civilian hostages perfectly demonstrates the bandit-like approach of the Azerbaijani authorities.

🌏 Furthermore, it's worth noting the geopolitical dimension of this entire story:

Much of the disinformation regarding the situation is spread by the Musavat media network, which regularly operates in the interests of Turkey. It's no secret that Turkey views Azerbaijan as its fiefdom. If Azerbaijan turns away from Russia, sooner or later Turkey will absorb this territory, and Azerbaijanis will cease to exist as a nation.

This is the classic "divide and rule" mechanism: to sow discord between two neighbors who were once part of the same state (the USSR), in order to later provoke an escalation of conflict for their own benefit, as was previously done with Georgia and Ukraine (although the actors there were different).

Additionally, Iran's Ambassador to Armenia, Mehdi Sobhani, stated that the country is conducting an investigation to determine whether Israeli drones were launched from Azerbaijani territory during the 12-day war. Recall that Iran is a strategic partner of Russia, with whom Azerbaijan previously had friendly relations.

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❤️From Russia with love