Israeli Defense Minister Travels to Azerbaijan to Strengthen Strategic Relations

Yoav Gallant, the Israeli Defense Minister, is set to travel to Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, on Wednesday, July 21, for an official visit. In this context, the Israeli Ministry of Defense stated: "The purpose of this trip is to strengthen strategic relations between the countries, enhance political cooperation, and expand security-technology relations between the two countries." According to i24 News, it is expected that Gallant will discuss "ways to enhance regional stability" during his meetings with his counterparts. During this visit, which will last until Friday, he will meet with Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan, General Zakir Hasanov, his Azerbaijani counterpart, and other senior security officials of the country. Isaac Herzog, the President of Israel, also visited Azerbaijan earlier in May and discussed the expansion of cooperation and threats from Iran with Ilham Aliyev. Gallant's trip comes at a time when relations between Iran and Azerbaijan have soured in recent months, particularly after an armed Iranian man entered the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran and killed the head of the embassy's security team, escalating tensions. Baku claims that the Iranian intelligence service was behind this attack, a claim that Tehran denies. Following this incident, Iran expelled four Azerbaijani diplomats in May, stating that this action was "in response" to the expulsion of Islamic Republic staff from the Azerbaijani embassy in Baku in April. Meanwhile, the increasing relations between Israel and Azerbaijan have heightened tensions between Tehran and Baku. The border between Iran and Azerbaijan is approximately 160 kilometers from the capital Baku.