Israel definitely should develop a balanced diplomatic approach towards the Caucasus. But it must not be built on baseless claims and wishful thinking. Trading the only real friends (with almost a thousand years of peaceful coexistence) in the Muslim world for a handshake with an obvious Iranian ally is not a mistake. It is suicide.
“From a security, geostrategic and economic perspective the Israeli-Azerbaijani alliance is very important, but there are problems,” says the recently-published article penned by Rafael Castro.
The problems are always there, but none of those were brought up in the article. The majority of the issues it mentions are associated with an Armenian-populated separatist enclave on Azerbaijani soil. The piece claims that Israel should not always be on Azerbaijan’s side because it “may harm” the Jewish state.
It is easy to play on the emotions of the public, which has no previous knowledge of the region. Let’s fact-check what “may harm” us.
Claim: “Israeli intelligence has helped Azerbaijan combat Islamist organizations that threaten President Ilham Aliyev’s rule.”
Fact: No, Islamist organizations backed by Iran threaten the Israeli embassy, Israeli tourists, Israeli companies in Azerbaijan. Tehran openly threatens Aliyev for being “Zionist patsy,” “Rabbi Ilham Alef,” “Slave of the Jews,” as Iranian state media put it. See the difference?
Claim: President Aliyev “threatens to reclaim and ethnically cleanse the entire disputed territory.”
Fact: No, he never said anything like that, he said “Armenians living in Karabakh have to either take up Azerbaijani citizenship or seek another place of residence.”
Claim: Azerbaijan wants to “annex Armenian territories bordering Iran,” and this “escalated tensions.”
Fact: Well, that is what Iranian state media report, but it is a lie. As a result of the 2020 war, Armenia agreed to open a transport corridor through its territory to connect Azerbaijan with Turkey through a trunk road from the East to the EU. Tehran calls it “a Zionist plan to isolate Iran.” So, if Iran is against it, should Israel oblige?
Claim: “Evangelical Christians are a crucial ally for the Jewish state, and exposing them to images of bombed-out Christian schools, monasteries and churches in the Caucasus could damage Israel’s good name.”
Fact: There is no connection whatsoever between the Armenian Apostolic Church and Evangelical Christians. No Christian schools, monasteries and churches in Armenia were bombed by Azerbaijan. It was actually Armenia who struck Azerbaijani cities with missiles 3 years ago (some say the Israeli Iron Dome saved innocent people). The conflict has no religious background at all. It is exactly like saying the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is literally an Islam-Judaism confrontation.
And now let’s talk about facts that, strangely enough, were omitted. And there are plenty.
Since 1992, Israel has tried hard to establish good relations in the Caucasus with Armenia and Azerbaijan. Azerbaijanis, who have a thousand-year-long history of peaceful coexistence with the Jews (check the history of Quba region), went forward, and despite enormous pressure from the Arab states for decades provided Israel with energy resources. Long before we could sell them UAVs and support them against Iran.
The Azerbaijani President was behind the reconciliation between Israel and Turkey. His policy “all our allies should be friends” worked, and thanks to him Prime Minister Netanyahu is going to meet with President Erdogan on July 28th.
Azerbaijani tank commander Albert Agarunov is the only Jewish National hero in the Muslim world. He’s been praised by Azerbaijanis as a hero since his death in 1992. Who is the National hero in Armenia? Google the name Garegin Nzhdeh.
According to the ADL’s World Antisemitism Index 2014, and 2018 Pew Research Center, Armenians are the most antisemitic nation in Europe. The trend is continuing, and according to the ISGAP, Iranians are using that to promote anti-Israeli sentiment.
The Israeli Diaspora Ministry’s report on antisemitism worldwide confirms that. The Armenian lobby in the US also tends to promote pro-Iranian and antisemitic statements.
In focus: Relationship between Armenia and Iran
While the Israel-Azerbaijan relationship is based on mutual respect and long historical tradition of coexistence, with mutual benefit thrown in for good measure, the relationship between Iran and Armenia is mostly about the well-being of the Ayatollah’s regime. Iran declares that it is “protecting Armenia” while directly using this country to bypass sanctions. Armenia voluntarily entered this kind of relationship with Iran.
It is not something new: US diplomats concluded in late 2008 that the government of Armenia had supplied Iran with rockets and machine guns later used to kill American troops in Iraq, according to State Department cables.
The US has warned Armenia about its close relations with Iran, including during the head of the CIA’s visit to Armenia in the summer of 2022. But they did not listen. In the last year the president of Iran has made several statements emphasizing the importance of relations with Armenia and advocated its intensification. “Iran considers Armenia a close and friendly country,” Raisisaid. “Armenia intends to develop relations with Iran as much as possible and in all areas,” Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan echoed him.
“Armenia’s security is Iran’s security,” Iran’s Foreign Affairs Minister declared on October 20, 2022. The next day, his Armenian counterpart emphasized that relations between the two countries were based on “a profound understanding of the common natural interests of the states.” On February 11 this year, President Khachaturyan reiterated, “The Republic of Armenia is keen to expand and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation between Armenia and Iran for the stability of the region and benefit of our Peoples.”
On October 30, 2022, the Armenian Defense Ministry acknowledged that Iran had delivered attack drones, and in the same month the Iranians donated 600 missiles to the Armenians. In April 2023, Armenian military units for the first time used Iranian-made drones to attack the Azerbaijan Army – the same ones Iran sent to Russia. According to European sources, Iran used Yerevan’s civilian airport to transport weapons to Russia.
The same month, amid tensions between Iran and Azerbaijan, Iranian and Armenian top security officials held talks in Tehran.
And here is something from this month: “The Zionists have intensified their attacks on Iran in the past six months, and [Yoav] Gallant’s meeting with the head of the Azerbaijani border service cannot but cause anxiety among Iranian authorities. To counter the unfriendly policy of Baku, Tehran has to supply Yerevan with defensive weapons to restore the balance of power in the South Caucasus,” stated “Rahborde Moaser,” reported the Iranian pro-regime analytical outlet.
It is not just military cooperation. On November 24, Armenia spoke out against a resolution of a special session of the UN General Assembly’s Human Rights Council entitled, “The deteriorating human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran.” Shortly after Iran’s harsh crackdown on protests—which were largely the result of severe discrimination against women—the wife of Armenian Prime Minister Hakobyan visited Tehran. There, on January 18th 2023, she took part in the “First International Congress of Powerful Women” sponsored by the authorities. On February 27, Iran’s Foreign Minister acknowledged her participation in this important event for the regime.
The list of facts proving that Armenia has chosen the side of Israel’s arch-enemy is much longer, but there is no point in continuing it. Similarly, there is no point in trying to sacrifice relations with Azerbaijan, which extend well beyond cooperation and friendship, for a futile attempt to embrace a country that serves as a puppet for those who dream to eliminate us. This seems overwhelmingly counterproductive, to the point of self-hate.
