Azerbaijan condemns Israel’s recognition of Armenian genocide

Azerbaijan and Israel are allies but Baku's closest foreign partner is Turkey and the Caucasus country hinted the move by Israel could hit their bilateral relations

Azerbaijan issues rare rebuke against key ally Israel over Armenian genocide recognition The Israeli government’s decision on Sunday to formally recognise the Armenian genocide has drawn a rare rebuke from Azerbaijan, a close Israeli ally. In an official statement, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry called the recognition a "distortion of the historical facts" and "the reduction of a complex historical issue to a political decision". It called on the Israeli government to reconsider this “unacceptable” decision. Turkey, in a separate statement on Sunday, said the Israeli decision was a convenient way to distract public opinion from the fact that the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials over alleged crimes in Gaza. Azerbaijan and Israel have close ties, and Baku is one of Israel’s major oil suppliers, while Israel sells advanced weaponry to the Azerbaijani government. Turkey and Azerbaijan also see each other as close allies. Under the 2021 Shusha Declaration, both sides are obliged to support each other if either is attacked by a foreign party. Last year, Baku sought to ease tensions between Turkey and Israel over Syria and Gaza by hosting talks between the two sides. Read more: Azerbaijan issues rare rebuke against key ally Israel over Armenian genocide recognition   Members of the Armenian community in Israel hold banners as well as Armenian and Israeli national flags in Tel Aviv on 6 November 2020 (AFP)

Azerbaijan issues rare rebuke against key ally Israel over Armenian genocide recognition Submitted by Ragip Soylu on Mon, 06/29/2026 - 09:30 Israel's Likud-led government made the a move on Sunday in what is widely seen as a swipe against Turkey Members of the Armenian community in Israel hold banners as well as Armenian and Israeli national flags in the coastal city of Tel Aviv on 6 November 2020 (AFP) Off The Israeli government’s decision on Sunday to formally recognise the Armenian genocide has drawn a rare rebuke from Azerbaijan, a close Israeli ally. In an official statement, Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry said the Israeli decision was a matter of “serious concern". The ministry called the recognition a "distortion of the historical facts" and "the reduction of a complex historical issue to a political decision". It added that the decision, which was "without a sound legal or scholarly basis" was "unacceptable". “Such actions do not contribute to reconciliation or mutual understanding. Instead, they deepen existing divisions and undermine efforts to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region,” the statement said. The ministry called on the Israeli government to reconsider its decision. Azerbaijan and Israel have close ties and Baku is one of Israel’s major oil suppliers, while Israel sells advanced weaponry to the Azerbaijani government. Last year, Baku sought to ease tensions between Turkey and Israel over Syria and Gaza by hosting talks between the two sides. Azerbaijan expresses doubts about joining Gaza international force Read More » Turkey and Azerbaijan see each other as close allies. Under the 2021 Shusha Declaration, both sides are obliged to support each other if either is attacked by a foreign party. Ankara and Israel both supported Azerbaijan during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020, when Baku captured large areas of territory that had been occupied by Armenia. The Israeli decision is technically a cabinet position and would need to pass through the Knesset before formally becoming the state’s official position. Dunya Basol, an academic specialising in Israeli affairs, said Azerbaijan may seek to pressure Israel to block the resolution at the Knesset level. “It is also astonishing that the Israeli Knesset would ignore Azerbaijan’s sensitivity on this issue and assume that the Azerbaijan-Turkey alliance is an ordinary one,” he said. Turkey, in a separate statement on Sunday, said the Israeli decision was a convenient way to distract public opinion from the fact that the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials over alleged crimes in Gaza. Israel is also facing proceedings at the International Court of Justice over genocide allegations. Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict Istanbul, Turkey News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

Azerbaijan on Monday denounced a decision by its ally Israel to recognise the World War I massacres of Armenians as a genocide, a move widely seen as a rebuke by Israel to Turkiye. Azerbaijan and Israel are allies but Baku’s closest foreign partner is Turkiye and the Caucasus country hinted that the move by Israel could hit their bilateral relations. The recognition by Israel — announced on Sunday — was of “serious concern”, Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry said in a statement. Armenia has long sought international recognition that the mass killings under the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1917 amounted to a genocide, in which 1.5 million people died. Turkiye strongly denies the accusation of genocide and says that both Armenians and Turks died as a result of World War I. It puts the death toll in the hundreds of thousands. More than two dozen countries, including the United States, France and Germany, recognise the killings as a genocide. “Such actions do not contribute to reconciliation or mutual understanding,” Azerbaijan said of Israel’s move. “Instead, they deepen existing divisions and undermine efforts to achieve lasting peace and stability in the region. We call on the Israeli government to reconsider this decision,” the foreign ministry added. Azerbaijan and Israel cooperate extensively on defence and security measures. Successive Israeli governments had avoided formally recognising the Armenian genocide, in part to preserve relations with Turkiye, once one of Israel’s closest strategic partners in the region. But since the war in Gaza erupted, Turkiye has regularly accused Israel of committing genocide in the Palestinian territory, an accusation Israel strongly denies. Azerbaijan and Armenia, locked in conflict for decades over the status of Karabakh — an Azerbaijani exclave ruled for three decades by Armenian separatists — have started ratcheting down tensions and taking steps towards finalising a comprehensive peace deal.