Category: Azer News

A plenary meeting of the G-77 and China Group was held at UNESCO Headquarters, chaired by Azerbaijan, AzerNEWS reports.

The session was attended by Nasser bin Hamad Al Hinzab, Chairman of UNESCO’s Executive Board and Qatar’s Permanent Representative to UNESCO, as a guest.

During the meeting, member states were briefed on the agenda for the 224th session of UNESCO’s Executive Board. Participants also exchanged views on the Group’s active involvement in the Board’s work and discussed other current matters.

In his opening remarks, Azerbaijan’s Permanent Representative to UNESCO, Ambassador Elman Abdullayev, emphasized the significance of the meeting in enhancing coordination within the Group ahead of important upcoming sessions.

He noted that the agenda for the 224th Executive Board session covers several key issues, including budgetary matters and the “UNESCO 80” roadmap, which are essential for enabling the Organization to effectively carry out its mission in an increasingly complex global context.

The Chairman of UNESCO’s Executive Board also addressed the meeting, outlining the main priorities and expectations for the upcoming session and stressing the importance of cooperation and multilateral dialogue among member states.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi talked over the phone with his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot and told him that United States President Donald Trump’s latest threat to Tehran “amounts to normalizing war crimes and genocide,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a readout on Monday, AzerNEWS reports.

Araghchi warned that, if Trump acted on his threats, Iran’s military would deliver a “decisive and comprehensive response” and stressed that the “consequences of such a situation will not be limited to Iran and the region, but will have destructive effects on the world’s energy and economy, for which the responsibility will lie solely with American officials and the aggressors.”

Meanwhile, Barrot emphasized the importance of resolving the conflict through diplomacy.

Over the weekend, Trump threatened to unleash “hell” on Iran unless Tehran opened the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday evening US time, vowing to target power plants and bridges.

On April 6, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev held a one-on-one meeting with President of Georgia Mikheil Kavelashvili in Tbilisi, AzerNEWS reports.

During the conversation, the Presidents noted that Azerbaijani-Georgian bilateral relations are based on the principles of friendship, good-neighborliness, and strategic partnership. The sides hailed the successful development of cooperation across various areas, including political, economic, energy, green energy, transport, and investment. The importance of reciprocal visits at various levels in expanding bilateral relations was also highlighted.

They emphasized the significance of the joint transport and energy projects implemented by Azerbaijan and Georgia, noting their strategic and economic importance.

During the meeting, the role of the normalization process between Azerbaijan and Armenia in ensuring stability and security in the South Caucasus was highlighted.

The Presidents praised the cooperation between their countries within international organizations and exchanged views on the prospects for bilateral relations and other issues of mutual interest.

Following the meeting, the head of state signed the guest book.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy Command announced that the Strait of Hormuz “will never return to its previous state, especially for the United States and Israel”, AzerNEWS reports.

The declaration apparently signalled Tehran’s rejection of US President Donald Trump’s call to open the waterway.

“The naval forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps are currently completing operational preparations for the plan announced by Iranian authorities for a new order in the Persian Gulf,” the navy command wrote on its profile on X. Tehran had previously hinted it would impose a new order in the strategically important Hormuz Strait, possibly exerting control over it even after the end of the conflict. At the same time, it was reported that Iran was charging ships two million dollars for safe passage. Moreover, Iran allowed vessels from non-hostile countries to pass through the channel unimpeded.

Earlier on Sunday, US President Donald Trump threatened Iran with “hell” unless the strait was unblocked by Tuesday.

A book exhibition titled “Theater Scholar Ingilab Karimov – 95” has been presented to visitors of the Azerbaijan National Library, AzerNEWS reports.

The exhibition marks the 95th anniversary of the birth of the prominent theater scholar, Doctor of Art Studies, ANAS Corresponding Member, and Professor Ingilab

The display highlights the scholar’s research on the history of Azerbaijani theater, dramaturgy, and the creative work of prominent cultural figures. It also presents his scientific works, monographs, publications he reviewed and edited,as well as materials in both Azerbaijani and Russian documenting his life and academic career, along with periodical press coverage.

Ingilab Saleh oglu Karimov was born on April 4, 1931, in the city of Goychay. He received his secondary education there and graduated in 1953 from the Theater Studies Faculty of the Azerbaijan State Theater Institute (now the Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts). Beginning in 1957, he worked at the Institute of Architecture and Art of the Azerbaijan Academy of Sciences. From 1985 until the end of his life, Ingilab Karimov headed the Department of Theater, Cinema, and Television at the institute.

In 1963, Karimov defended his candidate dissertation titled “The Youth Theater of Soviet Azerbaijan,” and in 1988, he defended his doctoral dissertation in Moscow, “Problems of the Emergence, Formation, and Development of Azerbaijani Theater (Late 19th – Early 20th Centuries),” earning a Doctor of Art Studies degree.

In the same year, he was awarded the academic title of professor, and in 2001, he was elected a Corresponding Member of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences.

One of the founders of national theater studies, Ingilab Karimov authored hundreds of academic articles and nearly 200 scholarly works, including 25 monographs and books such as “History and Stages of Development of Azerbaijani Professional Theater,” “History of Azerbaijani Theater” (Volumes I and II), “Heydar Aliyev: On Art, Artists, and Mastery,” “Abdulla Shaig and Theater – 80,” “Aghadadash Gurbanov,” “A. Hagverdiyev and Theater,” and “Nariman Narimanov and Theater,” among others.

Under Professor Ingilab Karimov’s supervision, 15 scholars earned their PhD degrees. He also made a significant contribution to the training of highly qualified cultural professionals.

The distinguished scholar was also engaged in literary creativity. He authored a collection of short stories titled “How Could It Not Bleed,” staged the tragedy “The Tragedy of Betrayal” at the Baku Municipal Theater, and translated 18 plays that were later performed on various theater stages.

Professor Ingilab Karimov’s works and research have made a substantial contribution to the development of Azerbaijani theater and culture.

Libya’s oil production has surged to approximately 1.43 million barrels per day, the highest level recorded in over a decade, Masoud Suleiman, AzerNEWS reports, citing foreign media.

Speaking at a meeting, Suleiman highlighted that oil sales revenue for February exceeded 2 billion dollars, all of which was transferred to the state treasury without deductions-a milestone not seen in years.

He added that domestic fuel supplies remain stable despite ongoing global energy crises, and maintenance on the Al-Sharara oilfield’s export pipeline has been completed, restoring production to normal levels.

Suleiman emphasized that sustaining and increasing output depends on the stability of the power grid and further improvements in production efficiency.

Oil and gas exports remain Libya’s primary source of revenue but have been repeatedly disrupted by political instability and conflict. The Al-Sharara oilfield, the largest in the country, is located around 900 km south of Tripoli and has a production capacity of over 300,000 barrels of crude oil per day.

The recent surge in production not only strengthens Libya’s economic outlook but also signals a potential shift in regional energy dynamics, as the country seeks to reassert itself as a key player in the global oil market.

“He (President Ilham Aliyev – ed.) is a valued friend of Georgia, and a visit by the President of Azerbaijan here is always a great honor for us,” Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Kobakhidze said during a joint press statement with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

The Prime Minister noted: ‘We took the opportunity to discuss our bilateral relations and the processes in the region.’

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that his country targeted Iran’s “largest petrochemical facility” at Asaluyeh, near the South Pars gas field, AzerNEWS reports.

“Iran’s two petrochemical facilities, which together account for about 85% of its exports, are out of service,” Katz stated, adding that Israel intends to continue attacks on Iran’s “national infrastructure.”

Over the weekend, Israel targeted the Mahshahr Petrochemical Special Economic Zone in Iran’s southern Khuzestan province, claiming the site was used to make materials for ballistic missiles.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that military operations against Iran will continue at full intensity, according to a statement posted on his official X (formerly Twitter) account.

Speaking amid escalating tensions, Netanyahu praised the Israel Defense Forces for its recent operations, including a strike in Tehran that reportedly killed Majid Khademi, the head of intelligence for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

He also commended the military for eliminating Yazdan Mir, who had led Unit 840 of the IRGC’s Quds Force. According to Netanyahu, Mir-also known by the alias Sardar Bagheri-was responsible for orchestrating attacks targeting Jewish communities worldwide.

‘Anyone who seeks to harm our citizens, directs terror against Israel, or builds Iran’s axis of evil will be held accountable,’ Netanyahu said, warning that Israel would act with strength and determination against its adversaries.

On April 6, an official welcome ceremony was held in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, for President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, AzerNEWS reports.

A guard of honor was lined up for President Ilham Aliyev.

President of Georgia Mikheil Kavelashvili welcomed President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.

The chief of the guard of honor reported to the President of Azerbaijan.

The national anthems of Azerbaijan and Georgia were played.

The two presidents passed along the line of guard of honor.

When Mikheil Kavelashvili was elected as Georgia’s new president, the first visit he undertook was neither to Brussels nor Washington nor Ankara; it was to Baku. This move, which took place in April 2025, signalled a clear message regarding where Georgia’s most important partnership currently stands. Today, the visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Georgia concludes this cycle, the ultimate form of diplomatic exchange within the bilateral arsenal, meticulously planned with all due ceremony at Shota Rustaveli International Airport.

But once the rhetoric of joint declarations is stripped away, what remains is a unique relationship forged between the two states over the past thirty years that has been of a strategic nature. Azerbaijan and Georgia’s trade turnover was estimated at $881 million in 2025, almost doubling the amount registered ten years ago. Azerbaijan is Georgia’s largest trading partner and the sole provider of energy resources, with SOCAR exporting gas to Georgia and maintaining a sizeable network of retail and downstream operations in the country. Azerbaijan has invested a total of $3.1 billion in Georgia’s economy.

The tangible manifestation of this alliance is represented by infrastructure. The oil pipeline Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan, the gas pipeline Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum, and the railway Baku-Tbilisi-Kars are not just bilateral initiatives but form a backbone of Europe’s energy security and Eurasian corridor that passes through their territories and creates additional income, political leverage, and importance for them.

Middle Corridor progress has been phenomenal. By 2025, the amount of container cargo passing through Azerbaijan had jumped 19%, to 135,000 TEU, with over 390 container trains running on the China-Europe axis. The transit share of the Middle Corridor’s volume for Georgia had also increased correspondingly – by the close of 2025, transit was responsible for almost 58% of Georgia’s total rail freight traffic. A deal signed between the railway authorities of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Kazakhstan in October 2025 to digitize documentation had cut the time needed for the transit of goods from eight to nine hours to just forty minutes.

For both Baku and Tbilisi, the last two years have been marked by the experience of being put under the same kind of pressure from outside forces, in the form of the European Union’s demands for democratic governance in Georgia, and Western powers over the internal politics of Azerbaijan. The reaction from both sides is almost identical, with both sides insisting on their own sovereignty and resisting “double standards and external interference,” while reinforcing the bond between the two nations as a declaration of regional independence.

This is not just strategic convenience. There is a certain shared logic here that the three countries of the region, and especially those which are the closest allies, should exhibit “trilateral agency” by solving their problems collectively without having any third party mediate for them. The possibility of engaging Armenia in the framework of a genuine trilateral cooperation policy that was raised during the Tbilisi conference of deputy foreign ministers in April 2025 has given this trip extra strategic importance.

The development of the corridor TRIPP (the potential transportation artery from Nakhchivan to the Azerbaijani mainland via Armenia) presents a dilemma for Georgia. The full implementation of such a corridor would provide another east-west transportation corridor not using the territory of Georgia.

Perhaps, Baku is quite sensitive to it as well. There can be at least one way to interpret the amount of investment into Georgia – the Black Sea submarine cable, the joint logistics digitization, and the amounts of traded goods. Indeed, while developing the TRIPP project, Azerbaijan ensures that Tbilisi will always remain structurally interested in this project.

Monday’s state visit comes at a time when the surrounding region has evolved substantially since the last visit by Aliyev to Tbilisi. The war in Iran has interfered with the southern energy routes and forced all governments in the region to think about resilience. Georgia and Azerbaijan have more advantages than many other states in the region due to their economic interconnectedness. In particular, a Black Sea submarine cable that would eventually transfer 4 GW of renewable energy produced by Azerbaijan to Europe through Georgian and Romanian territory has become highly significant for geopolitical reasons; its route was selected specifically for this reason.

At this point, the improved strategic relationship between the two nations acts as an image of what this region could become if the two countries decided to make something of themselves by working together, rather than squabbling over the same strategic leftovers, and doing so in their own way, as they both continually insist.