Russia is witnessing what it describes as deliberate efforts by unnamed actors to drive a wedge between Moscow and Baku. That’s according to Dmitry Masyuk, Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Fourth CIS Department.
“We are seeing active attempts by certain forces to undermine our relationship with Baku,” Masyuk said during the opening of the Gorchakov Foundation’s Caucasus Dialogue educational program at the Mashuk Knowledge Center. “There are insinuations regarding the AZAL plane crash last December, which contributed to the closure of the Russian House in Baku.”
Masyuk noted that Russia continues to convey its core positions to the Azerbaijani side to mitigate the damage caused to bilateral ties.
“Now there are attempts to accuse us of pressuring ethnic Azerbaijanis in Russia following the recent detention in Yekaterinburg of several Russian citizens suspected of serious crimes,” he said. “We are consistently communicating our principled approach to our Azerbaijani partners and expect the same constructive attitude from Baku’s leadership.”
Sputnik Azerbaijan Incident
Earlier, Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry confirmed that law enforcement had conducted an operation at the offices of Sputnik Azerbaijan. RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan stated that staff members could no longer be reached following reports of the raid.
The editorial team said they had not received any official ban on operations in the country and were engaged in talks with Azerbaijani authorities to resolve possible issues through working groups.
Detentions in Yekaterinburg
On June 27, the Russian Investigative Committee reported that law enforcement had dismantled an ethnic criminal group in Yekaterinburg. The suspects are believed to be involved in multiple murders and attempted murders dating back to 2001, 2010, and 2011. Six Russian nationals were detained. One suspect reportedly died of heart failure, while the cause of death for a second is still under investigation.
According to Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, Russia’s chargé d'affaires in Azerbaijan, Pyotr Volokovykh, was summoned and provided necessary explanations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov emphasized that communication with Baku on the circumstances and nature of the arrests must continue. In response, Azerbaijan lodged a protest and canceled several cultural and other events with Russia. Moscow expressed regret over these steps.
Russian House Closure
In February, Rossotrudnichestvo announced it was forced to suspend operations of the Russian House in Baku after Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry demanded the premises be vacated. The official reason cited was the organization’s lack of legal registration in accordance with local laws.
Rossotrudnichestvo head Yevgeny Primakov said during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum that Azerbaijan had yet to provide a substantive response on how to formally register the Russian House. “The underlying issue remains unclear,” he told TASS.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Florstein/Creative Commons 4.0
Based on materials from TASS