Yesterday, Nakhchivan was subjected to a drone attack by Iran. During the attack, 4 of our citizens were injured, and the airport's infrastructure suffered serious damage.
Official bodies such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan immediately reacted to the issue.
Nevertheless, the Security Council held a meeting chaired by President Ilham Aliyev. The attack was strongly condemned by the President.
It is of interest whether parliamentary diplomacy will manifest itself.
That is, whether inter-parliamentary working groups will establish contact and discuss the issues related to the events is a noteworthy nuance.
In a statement to Modern.az, Sayyad Aran, a member of the Azerbaijan-Iran Inter-Parliamentary Working Group of the Milli Majlis, stated that Iran's attack on Nakhchivan is not an attitude that a friendly and neighboring state can display:
“Undoubtedly, this is a treacherous attitude. Azerbaijan has always defended Iran during its independence. Mr. President has repeatedly stated that Azerbaijani territory cannot be used for any armed, military, or political purposes against Iran. This is unequivocally the position of both the people and the state. The drone attack on Nakhchivan is an inhumane act, not a stance befitting a friendly and neighboring country. In our relations with Iran, we have always been sincere and kind. On the contrary, we have faced incidents. The embassy was treacherously attacked. After a long period of deliberation, taking into account the opinion of the international community and so on, that person received his deserved punishment. When other countries committed hostile acts against Iran for other purposes, we were not on that list. Last year, certain events occurred, and again, maintaining our composure, we defended Iran as a state without allowing any wrong actions or attitudes towards it. However, Iran's attitude towards us, especially after the period of independence, has never been positive. But we always maintained feelings of neighborliness. Undoubtedly, as our President said, this issue will be given a legal assessment, and if such an incident recurs, necessary action will be taken against Iran. We have already exhausted our limit for forgiving Iran".
Regarding whether inter-parliamentary working groups will hold discussions on the issue, S. Aran said the following:
"The meeting of the working groups depends on the Iranian side. First and foremost, they must apologize and admit their guilt. The Iranian side must investigate the reason for this barbaric act against the Azerbaijani people. After this, certain negotiations may take place. For now, the ball is in Iran's court. I wouldn't want to say anything about that yet, but if the Iranian side does what I've listed, a meeting of the Working Groups could take place. However, the situation is extremely difficult. Iran must acknowledge the words spoken by the President addressing them and apologize in front of the world. Finally, they must punish those who committed this wrong act. Only after this can certain issues be considered. But the Working Group taking action, and so on, is not possible in the current situation. There is a state policy. Let them first apologize, pay compensation, and find and punish the culprits".
