AZERBAIJAN’S PRESIDENT SIGNS DECREE ON PROVIDING $2M IN HUMANITARIAN AID TO UKRAINE

Mon 11 August 2025:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Monday signed a decree on providing Kyiv with an additional $2 million in humanitarian aid, as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war nears three and a half years.

The document, shared on the website of Azerbaijan’s presidency, decrees the allocation of the funds to the Energy Ministry for purchasing electrical equipment produced in the country and their shipment, noting the funds will come from the president’s reserve fund under the 2025 state budget.

It ordered Azerbaijan’s Finance Ministry to provide the amount of financing specified in the decree.

“In recent years, the Azerbaijani government has sent humanitarian aid to the Ukrainian people several times due to the situation in Ukraine,” the decree added.

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Baku, the decree added, has provided humanitarian assistance to many countries of the world on a bilateral and multilateral basis “based on the principles of humanism.”

Aliyev held on Sunday a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during which the two leaders touched on bilateral relations, among other issues, according to a corresponding presidential statement.

Baku has provided a total of $42 million in financial assistance for Ukraine’s recovery, Deputy Foreign Minister Yalchin Rafiyev said at the 4th Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome last month.

Relations between Russia and Azerbaijan have worsened significantly since December 2024, primarily due to the downing of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet by Russian air defenses, killing 38 people.

Azerbaijan demanded accountability, but Russia’s vague response and lack of formal apology fueled tensions. In May 2025, President Aliyev’s absence from Moscow’s Victory Day parade signaled growing distrust. Tensions escalated further in June 2025 when Russian police raids in Yekaterinburg killed two ethnic Azerbaijanis, prompting Baku to accuse Moscow of ethnic violence.

Azerbaijan retaliated by canceling Russian cultural events, raiding Sputnik’s Baku office, and arresting Russian nationals. Russia responded with arrests of Azerbaijanis and diplomatic protests.

This rift between Azerbaijan and Russia reflects Azerbaijan’s assertive foreign policy, bolstered by its 2020 Karabakh victory and ties with Turkey, while Russia’s influence in the Caucasus weakens due to its focus on Ukraine and Western sanctions. Economic ties persist, but the relationship is at a post-Soviet low.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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