Russia has demanded the immediate release of three journalists detained in Azerbaijan, accusing Baku of violating diplomatic norms amid a spiralling dispute between the two ex-Soviet nations.
The row erupted after two Azerbaijani citizens died following police raids on the diaspora community in Yekaterinburg. Moscow claims one died of a heart attack, while the other case is still under investigation. Azerbaijani authorities, however, have launched a criminal probe into alleged torture and deliberate murder, after autopsies were conducted in Baku.
In response to the deaths, Azerbaijani officials raided the local offices of Russia’s Sputnik news agency, arrested three staff, and cancelled Russian cultural events. The Kremlin called the arrests “absolutely inconsistent with common norms and rules” and summoned Azerbaijan’s envoy on Tuesday, accusing Baku of “deliberately dismantling bilateral relations.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov urged de-escalation and expressed hope that “highly emotional responses” would give way to dialogue.
Tensions between the two countries have simmered since a December 2024 plane crash that Baku blamed on a Russian missile strike. The latest confrontation highlights deepening fractures between Moscow and its traditional allies in the Caucasus, amid Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.
