Choucha (Azerbaijan) (AFP) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliev displayed their “unity of hearts” on Sunday during a meeting in Azerbaijan aimed at easing recent tensions.
Published on: 08/11/2026 - 17:04
Turkish-Azerbaijani relations deteriorated after Baku adopted new rules on school uniforms in September that restricted the wearing of the Islamic veil.
This measure, criticized in Türkiye, led to a diplomatic quarrel fueled by other disagreements between Ankara and Baku, in particular concerning cooperation between Israel and Azerbaijan.
In this context, the Turkish and Azerbaijani leaders were keen on Sunday to show the sustainability of their alliance.
“With the permission of Almighty God, our unity will endure forever,” Erdogan said at a joint press conference with Aliyev from the city of Shusha.
This symbolic city and its citadel dating from the 18th century were reconquered in November 2020 by the Azerbaijani army, with military support from Ankara, during a war against Armenian separatists in the Karabakh region.
He defended a “unity of hearts” between Turkey and Azerbaijan which, according to him, “draws its strength from our common past and illuminates our future”.
These two neighboring countries, whose languages are very close, have close political, military, economic and cultural ties, summed up by the motto "one nation, two states" used by their respective diplomacies.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev, alongside Mr. Erdogan, stressed that their alliance covered “a vast geographical area”.
“Together, Azerbaijan and Turkey are even stronger,” he said, believing that his counterpart’s visit showed their “unity” to the “whole world”.
"Interference"
Azerbaijan, a predominantly Shiite former Soviet republic, is one of the most secular states in the Muslim world, while Turkey has an openly Islamo-conservative policy.
Baku's new rules on school uniforms prohibit additions deemed incompatible with secularism.
Although they do not mention the veil, young girls wearing the hijab have reportedly been refused entry to educational establishments, provoking demonstrations in Azerbaijan.
The Justice and Development Party (AKP), in power in Türkiye and from political Islam, demanded that Baku reverse these restrictions.
Oktay Saral, advisor to President Erdogan, also denounced the measure. In response, President Ilham Aliev's party accused Turkish critics of "interference" and Baku declared 31 Turkish citizens "persona non grata" for criticism posted on social media.
Mr. Erdogan dismissed Oktay Saral, but Ilham Aliev skipped the summit of Turkish leaders in Ankara on October 30 and sent his foreign minister in his place.
“Not the little brother”
In addition to this divergence concerning the relationship between religion and the state, analysts point out that the quarrel between Baku and Ankara illustrates other divergences.
Elkhan Shahinoglu, director of the Atlas research center, based in Baku, told AFP that these tensions come from the fact that "Baku does not consider itself the little brother in this alliance and insists on relations between equal partners."
“Tensions have long simmered over several issues, including Azerbaijan's sovereignty, Ankara's influence in Baku, divergent policies toward Israel and Turkey's rapprochement with Armenia,” Gönül Tol, an analyst at the Middle East Institute in Washington, told Xinhua.
Azerbaijan has established strong ties with Israel, which notably provided it with weapons during its 2020 war against Armenia and separatists.
These ties irritate Ankara, which has become increasingly hostile towards Israel due to the war in Gaza.
Turkey is also seeking to normalize relations with Armenia, with which Baku still has tense relations.
Despite the friction, the two countries remain closely linked by military and energy relations. Turkey serves as a key transit route for Azerbaijani oil and gas exports to Western markets.
© 2026 AFP
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