Iranian Foreign Ministry: On the Expulsion of Iranian Diplomats from Baku

Iran believes that the actions of the Azerbaijani side in declaring Iranian diplomats persona non grata contradict the principles of neighborly relations. This was stated on Friday by Nasser Kanani Chafi, the official representative of the Islamic Republic's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We consider the behavior of the government of the Republic of Azerbaijan to contradict the principles of neighborliness,” the statement said. The Iranian Foreign Ministry representative called on Baku to “show mutual respect, move towards neighborliness,” and to “stay away” from “the enemies of the region,” including Israel's “Zionists.”

On April 6, Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry announced that four employees of the Iranian embassy in Baku had been declared persona non grata and were instructed to leave the territory of Azerbaijan within 48 hours. The Iranian ambassador expressed “strong dissatisfaction with Azerbaijan’s recent provocative actions against his country.”

Relations between Baku and Tehran have particularly worsened following the armed attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in Iran this January, which resulted in the death of the head of security of the diplomatic mission and injuries to two of his colleagues. Following the incident, the embassy suspended its diplomatic activities, and the staff along with their families were evacuated to Azerbaijan.

Baku also considers the recent large-scale military exercises organized by Tehran near the border with Azerbaijan to be unfriendly. In addition, Baku announced Iran's alleged involvement in the attempted assassination of Azerbaijani parliament member Fazil Mustafa at the end of March. In recent months, Azerbaijani law enforcement authorities have carried out several operations aimed at arresting individuals accused of espionage and diversive activities on behalf of Iran.