Category: Azer News

Leyla Aliyeva held a meeting with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, focusing on the current state and future prospects of bilateral relations between Azerbaijan and Ethiopia, Azernews reports.

During the meeting, which took place in a spirit of cordial dialogue, Leyla Aliyeva conveyed greetings from the President of Azerbaijan and extended an invitation to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to visit the country on behalf of the Azerbaijani head of state.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed warmly accepted the invitation, expressing his high regard for the President of Azerbaijan and sharing words of appreciation for the strong ties between the two nations.

The Ethiopian leader also commended Azerbaijan’s rapid development and praised the farsighted policies of President Ilham Aliyev, highlighting his high international standing. Both sides emphasized the importance of deepening cooperation across various sectors.

The discussion also touched upon the large-scale reconstruction and development work ongoing in territories recently liberated from occupation.

Additionally, the successful experience of Azerbaijan hosting theCOP29 conference in November 2024 was noted with great interest. Opportunities to apply this experience at the upcoming COP32 conference in Ethiopia in 2027 were explored. Both parties reiterated the importance of knowledge and experience exchange in this critical area.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev arrived in the Swiss Confederation on January 19 to participate in the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, Azernews reports.

The head of state and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva were greeted by officials at Zurich International Airport.

A new judo hall has officially opened at the Ganja Sports Palace, Azernews reports.

The opening ceremony was attended by Rashad Rasulov, Executive Vice President of the Azerbaijan Judo Federation (AJF); Natig Bagirov, Advisor to the AJF President; Olympic medalist and member of the AJF Executive Committee, Movlud Miraliyev; world champion and AJF Executive Committee member Elkhan Mammadov, along with other officials.

Equipped with tatami mats that meet modern standards, the hall covers a total area of 483 square meters. It also features dedicated coaches’ rooms and changing facilities. The venue will provide training opportunities for more than 300 judo athletes.

Between 2022 and 2025, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation opened new judo halls in Ganja, Sumgayit, Gusar, Aghstafa, Zagatala, Goranboy, Sabirabad, Baku’s Zira settlement, Aghdash, Kurdamir, Astara, Jalilabad, Tartar, Gakh, Imishli, Shabran, and Zagatala’s Mosul village.

A total of 13,200 tatami mats have been distributed to 179 sports halls across Baku and the country’s regions.

Founded in 1972, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation actively promotes this martial art worldwide. Since 2015, the Federation has been led by Rovnag Abdullayev.

The country’s modern judo history was laid by Mehman Azizov, who won a silver medal at the Old World Championship in 1998.

A year later, the winner of the World Youth Games in Moscow, Rasul Salimov, grabbed the bronze medal at the European Championship in Slovakia. Another national judoka, Elchin Ismayilov, became the European champion in 2000 in Wroclaw.

However, the achievements of Azerbaijani judo fighters did not stop there. Elnur Mammadli was named the best at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 73 kg division.

The list of the country’s top judo fighters includes Rustam Orujov, Irina Kindzerskaya, Mammadali Mehdiyev, Elmar Gasimov, Hidayat Heydarov, Zelim Kotsoev, Ushangi Kokauri, and Nijat Shikhalizada.

US President Donald Trump has claimed that Denmark has failed to eliminate what he described as a Russian threat to Greenland, criticizing Copenhagen’s role in ensuring security on the strategically important island, Azernews reports.

‘NATO has been telling Denmark, for 20 years, that ‘you have to get the Russian threat away from Greenland.’ Unfortunately, Denmark has been unable to do anything about it. Now it is time, and it will be done!’ Trump wrote on the Truth Social platform.

In a separate post on January 17, Trump announced that the United States would impose 10 percent tariffs on the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, France, and Sweden, citing the Greenland dispute. According to the US president, the tariffs would be increased to 25 percent starting June 1 and would remain in force ‘until such time as a deal is reached for the complete and total purchase of Greenland.’

Greenland is a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark. In 1951, Washington and Copenhagen signed the Greenland Defense Treaty, alongside their commitments under NATO. Under the agreement, the United States undertook responsibility for defending the island against external aggression.

Trump’s remarks and the proposed trade measures add to growing tensions between Washington and several European allies, as the US president continues to link security concerns in the Arctic region with broader geopolitical and economic demands.

In 2025, Azerbaijan recorded 217,779 applications for the registration of foreigners and stateless persons at their place of residence, Azernews reports via the State Migration Service (SMS). During the same period, there were 80,691 applications for obtaining and extending residence permits, and 1,248 applications related to citizenship issues.

To put these figures in perspective with earlier years:

2024: The State Migration Service received 378,307 registration applications from foreigners and stateless persons for their place of stay, a significantly higher count than in 2025. In that year, there were also 77,334 applications for residence permits.

2023: According to broader official reporting, the total number of requests to the SMS across all migration categories, including registration, residence permits, work permits, citizenship, readmission and other matters, reached 599,500 in 2024, which was a slight decline from 2023, indicating that the overall migration service workload in 2023 was higher than in 2024. As of the end of 2024, the number of foreigners legally residing in Azerbaijan increased by 11.4% compared with 2023, underscoring larger migrant activity that year.

2022: While detailed breakdowns for 2022 are not published in the same format, the 2024 Cabinet report notes that e-appeals to the SMS in 2024, covering registration, residence and work permits plus other services, totaled 147,800, and the overall migration workload in 2024 decreased slightly compared with 2023, suggesting that 2022 figures were below 2023 levels.

Leyla Aliyeva has visited several social and cultural institutions in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Azernews reports.

She first visited the Berhan Blind Boarding Secondary School. Built under the initiative and patronage of Ethiopia’s First Lady, Zinash Tayachew, the school serves over 300 visually impaired students from grades 9 to 12, selected from across all regions of the country. Adapting the national curriculum to meet the specific needs of its students, the school utilizes Braille, audio resources, and computer screen-reading technology. In addition to core academic subjects, students receive specialized training in Braille literacy, orientation and mobility, life skills, music, handicrafts, and computer proficiency. By integrating academic learning with practical vocational skills, the Berhan Blind Boarding Secondary School empowers its students to succeed in higher education and prepares them for independent, productive lives in society.

Leyla Aliyeva subsequently visited the Lenegewa Women’s Rehabilitation and Skills Development Center.

Launched by the Mayor of Addis Ababa, Adanech Abiebie, the center is dedicated to transforming the lives of nearly one thousand women who have experienced homelessness or survived human trafficking. The facility is a comprehensive complex of 13 buildings that include modern classrooms, residential dormitories, vocational workshops, and specialized wings for psychological and medical support.

Women at the center undergo intensive three-to-six-month vocational programs designed to facilitate their entry into the workforce.

These courses range from computer literacy and electronics to textile manufacturing, catering, and beauty services, all aimed at maximizing each participant’s economic potential.

The visit concluded with a tour of the National Palace of Ethiopia.

The palace embodies the legacy of the country’s monarchs and the unyielding spirit of its people. Its history is closely intertwined with the stories of power, tradition, and modernity that have shaped the nation over the centuries. Built in 1955 to mark the Silver Jubilee of Emperor Haile Selassie, the palace was presented to him as a gift by his wife, Menen Asfaw. Designed by Italian architect Raffaele Petrone, the building combines local architectural motifs with international styles, reflecting the country’s cultural diversity and global connections.

The museum features the emperor’s rich automobile collection, as well as the palace complex adorned with fountains, sculptures, and lush greenery.

On January 19, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met with Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DP World, one of the world’s largest port operators, in Davos.

During the meeting, the sides hailed DP World’s successful operations in Azerbaijan.

The discussion highlighted Azerbaijan’s strategic location at the intersection of major international transport corridors. The parties also reviewed recent projects aimed at developing modern transport infrastructure in the country and underscored the potential for expanding cooperation with DP World.

The Minister of Youth and Sports, Farid Gayibov, has conducted his 24th meeting with representatives of Azerbaijan’s sports federations, Azernews reports.

The event, held at the Azerbaijan State Physical Education and Sports Academy, provided a platform for discussing recent accomplishments and outlining upcoming priorities for the nation’s sporting community.

The agenda included the final report of the 6th Islamic Solidarity Games and preparations for the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics. Discussions also covered athlete registration and classification procedures, ensuring that Azerbaijan’s sports talent is fully ready for international competitions.

International experts, including Edward Kolar, Rado Pisot, Matej Tusak, and Tomaz Levak, shared their insights on artificial intelligence (AI), the Az?rfit project, and both physical and psychological training plans for athletes.

Their presentations highlighted innovative strategies aimed at elevating Azerbaijan’s competitive edge in sports.

The meeting also addressed coaching courses for various sports disciplines, activities of the Youth and Sports Development Centers (UGIMs) under the ministry, and upcoming events such as the Youth Olympic Games in Senegal this year.

Preparations for Baku-2026, designated the “World Sports Capital,” were also discussed, along with a report on federations’ social media engagement.

The United States has conducted repeated reconnaissance flights around Iran over the past two days, marking the second time such aerial activity has been observed since nationwide protests began in late December 2025, according to data from the Flightradar24 platform, Azernews reports.

Flightradar24, a widely used flight-tracking service that provides real-time information on aircraft positions, altitude, and speed, showed multiple US reconnaissance aircraft operating near Iranian airspace. The latest flights follow an earlier round of US surveillance flights conducted shortly after the onset of Iran’s largest anti-government protests in decades.

The renewed aerial operations come amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington over Iran’s domestic situation and broader regional security concerns. Iran’s internal unrest, sparked by a sharp economic downturn and the collapse of the rial, has evolved into mass demonstrations against the government, drawing international attention and diplomatic pressure.

The previous reconnaissance took place five days ago, on January 19.

The surveillance flights coincide with other signs of escalating military readiness. Iran temporarily closed its airspace for several hours last week amid rising tensions with the US, forcing commercial carriers to cancel or reroute flights before reopening the skies once again. Aviation authorities in the EU have also urged airlines to avoid Iranian airspace, citing safety concerns as the risk of misidentification remains elevated due to increased military activity in the region.

Such reconnaissance missions are generally interpreted by analysts as efforts to gather intelligence on military deployments, air defenses, and other strategic indicators. In past decades, the US has frequently employed aerial reconnaissance near Iran-sometimes leading to high-profile incidents like the 2019 downing of a US surveillance drone over the Strait of Hormuz-reflecting long-standing strategic rivalry.

More than 39 kilograms of heroin concealed using sophisticated methods have been discovered and seized in Nakhchivan, Azernews reports, citing local media outlets.

Officers of the Nakhchivan Main Customs Department uncovered and removed from illegal circulation a particularly large quantity of narcotic drugs during a customs inspection.

The seizure took place at the ‘Julfa’ customs post, where a vehicle transporting a cargo declared as ‘plastic cladding panels’ was stopped for inspection. The shipment was transiting the country en route from Iran to Poland.

During the inspection, customs officers found that the narcotics had been carefully hidden inside the plastic panels using techniques designed to hinder detection. A total of 780 tightly packed parcels containing heroin were discovered, with a net weight of 39 kilograms and 315.246 grams.

An investigation into the incident is currently underway.