Associated Press Report on Israeli Military Aid to Azerbaijan

Officials and experts in Israel say that the country quietly assisted Azerbaijan's attack on Nagorno-Karabakh by sending powerful weapons. According to the Associated Press, they state that Israel had sent the weapons before Azerbaijan's attack on the region last month. The report indicates that Azerbaijani military cargo planes flew multiple times between a military base in southern Israel and an airport near Nagorno-Karabakh prior to the attack to regain control of the area. These flights continued while Western governments called for peace negotiations, raising serious concerns among Armenian officials in Yerevan, who have long been worried about the strategic alliance between Israel and Azerbaijan. The Associated Press notes that this Israeli action serves its interests in the unstable South Caucasus region. Arman Akopyan, the Armenian ambassador to Israel, told the Associated Press, "For us, it is a major concern that Israeli weapons are being fired at our people." He added that he has repeatedly expressed concern to Israeli politicians and lawmakers about the shipment of arms from Israel to Azerbaijan in recent weeks. Akopyan stated, "Why shouldn't Israel be in a position to at least express concern about the fate of those being expelled from their land?" In the attack on Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan used heavy artillery, rocket launchers, and drones, which experts say were primarily supplied by Israel and Turkey, forcing Armenian separatists to lay down their arms. Reports indicate that over 200 Armenians were killed in this attack, the vast majority of whom were armed forces, while about 200 Azerbaijani forces were also killed. Among the humanitarian consequences of Azerbaijan's military attack was the flight of over 100,000 people, or about 80% of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh, to Armenia. Baku has promised to respect the rights of Armenians, but they fled their homes in Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia out of fear for their lives and potential future confrontations with Azerbaijan. Prior to the attack on Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan had besieged the region for months, worsening the living conditions of the people. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan described the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh as "ethnic cleansing." In contrast, the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister rejected this accusation, stating that the Armenians left of their own accord. The Associated Press noted that the Israeli Foreign and Defense Ministries declined to comment on the use of their weapons in Nagorno-Karabakh or Armenia's concerns about Israel's military involvement with Azerbaijan. Yoav Gallant, Israel's Defense Minister, visited Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, this summer and praised the military cooperation between the two countries and their "joint fight against terrorism." Azerbaijan shares a border with Iran, and some experts view Israel's cooperation with Baku in relation to Iran. Arkadi Milman, a former Israeli ambassador to Azerbaijan and a current senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, stated, "There is no doubt about our position in defensive support of Azerbaijan. We have a strategic partnership to contain Iran." Although Israel now has significant natural gas resources in the Mediterranean, unlike when it was energy-poor, Azerbaijan still supplies at least 40% of the oil needed by Israel. According to the Associated Press, Israel turned to Baku's energy reserves in the late 1990s and established an oil pipeline through the energy transfer route in Turkey, which isolated Iran. At that time, Iran was investing in oil transfers that passed through its pipelines from Kazakhstan to global markets. The report indicates that Baku has long been suspicious of Iran, its Shia Muslim neighbor, and is dissatisfied with Tehran's support for Christian Armenia. The Islamic Republic also accuses Azerbaijan of becoming a base for Israeli intelligence operations against it. Both Azerbaijan and Israel deny this accusation. Tigran Balayan, an Armenian diplomat, told the Associated Press that it is clear to Armenia that Israel has interests in maintaining a military presence in Azerbaijan and using its territory "to monitor Iran." The news agency noted that Israeli military contractors have greatly benefited from their close relations with Azerbaijan. In this context, experts estimate that between 2016 and 2020, Israel supplied nearly 70% of Azerbaijan's arsenal, which gave it an advantage over Armenia and bolstered Israel's large defense industry. Peter Weissman, a senior researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which monitors arms sales, stated that Israeli weapons have played a "very important role" in strengthening the Azerbaijani army to achieve its goals. Weissman added that Israeli long-range missiles and explosive drones, known as loitering munitions, have compensated for the small size of the Azerbaijani air force and have even occasionally attacked deep into Armenia itself. He said, "At the same time, Israel's Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles have protected Azerbaijani airspace from incoming missiles and drones." Just before last month's attack, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense announced that it had tested the Barak-8 missile. The Associated Press reported that the Israeli manufacturer of this missile, Israel Aerospace Industries, declined to comment on Azerbaijan's use of its air defense systems and combat drones. The report indicates that Azerbaijan has spoken with particular enthusiasm about the success of Israeli drones in breaching Armenian defensive lines and disrupting the balance in the bloody six-week war in 2020. Previously, the Azerbaijani Defense Minister in 2016 referred to a combat drone made by the Israeli company "Elbit Systems" as "a nightmare for the Armenian army," which supported Azerbaijani forces during that year's conflict with Nagorno-Karabakh. There is also a photo of Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan, from 2021, during deadly border clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia, showing him smiling while petting a small Israeli suicide drone called "Harop." Israel has used similar suicide drones in deadly attacks against Palestinian militants in the occupied West Bank. Mukhtar Mamedov, Azerbaijan's ambassador to Israel, told the Associated Press, "We are happy with this cooperation; it is completely supportive and very useful for defense." He stated, "We do not hide this." At a critical moment in early September of this year, as diplomats were trying to prevent escalation in the South Caucasus, flight tracking data showed that Azerbaijani cargo planes began moving towards Ovda, a military base in southern Israel with a 3,000-meter runway, which is the only airport in Israel known to export explosives. The Associated Press identified at least six flights of Azerbaijan's Silk Way Airlines that landed at Ovda Airport between September 1 and September 17. Two days later, Azerbaijan launched its attack on the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh. In March, an investigation by Haaretz newspaper counted 92 military cargo flights from Azerbaijan to Ovda Airport between 2016 and 2020. The sudden increase in flights coincided with the escalation of war in Nagorno-Karabakh. Arman Akopyan, the Armenian ambassador to Israel, stated, "During the 2020 war, we witnessed flights every day, and now we are again witnessing an escalation of flights that led to the current conflict." He added, "It is clear to us what is happening." The Israeli Ministry of Defense declined to comment on these flights. Mukhtar Mamedov, the Azerbaijani ambassador, stated that he is aware of these reports but refrained from commenting. Ovidan Friedman, the founder of the Israeli activist group Yanshof, which seeks to prevent Israeli arms sales to human rights violators, stated, "If anyone can empathize with the constant fear of Armenians (in Nagorno-Karabakh) of ethnic cleansing, it is the Jewish people." He emphasized, "We have no interest in becoming accomplices." In the United States, Senator Ben Cardin, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued a statement on Wednesday, October 4, condemning Baku's provocative actions and statements regarding Nagorno-Karabakh and calling for a review of U.S. military aid and security cooperation with Azerbaijan. Senator Cardin, while expressing support for Armenia, condemned Azerbaijan's provocative actions, stating that Baku has used its military power in Nagorno-Karabakh for "the forced displacement of the Armenian population" and "ethnic cleansing." Armenian Prime Minister: "Ethnic cleansing" is ongoing in Nagorno-Karabakh. A senior U.S. official: Baku should safeguard the rights of Armenian residents of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijani forces arrested the former head of the separatist government of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenia requested assistance from the European Union; the United Nations: 100,000 people have fled to Armenia. UN forces in the Nagorno-Karabakh region; Pope Francis: I am worried. The first UN delegation arrived in Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan: We do not seek the emigration of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. The leadership of Nagorno-Karabakh: 120,000 Armenians are fleeing to Armenia out of fear of "ethnic cleansing." The United States has firmly declared support for the territorial integrity of Armenia.