Russia’s Lavrov hopes for resolution of ‘frictions’ between Azerbaijan and Iran

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that he hoped “frictions” between Azerbaijan and Iran would soon be resolved.

He made the comments during a join press conference with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who visited Moscow on Wednesday.

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Earlier the same day, Azerbaijan’s State Security Service said that it was investigating “a terror attack” after a lawmaker with strong anti-Iranian views was wounded in a gun attack at his home.

The two countries, which share a border of around 700 kilometers (430 miles), have a complex relationship.

Iran is wary of Azerbaijan’s relations with Israel, a major supplier of arms to Baku. Tehran is also wary over nationalists in Azerbaijan and its close ally Turkey fanning separatist tendencies among its sizeable ethnic Azeri population.

Azeris are the largest minority group in Iran, with millions living in a region in northwestern Iran that shares the same name as the independent state of Azerbaijan.

Earlier this month, Azerbaijan summoned Iran’s ambassador to Baku on after an Iranian warplane allegedly crossed the Azerbaijani border.

Tensions between the two neighbors escalated following an armed attack on Azerbaijan’s embassy in Tehran in January. The attack resulted in the death of an Azerbaijani security official and left two others wounded.

With Reuters

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