Azerbaijan issues rare rebuke against key ally Israel over Armenian genocide recognition
The Israeli government’s decision on Sunday to formally recognise the Armenian genocide has drawn a rare rebuke from Azerbaijan, a close Israeli ally.
In an official statement, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry called the recognition a "distortion of the historical facts" and "the reduction of a complex historical issue to a political decision".
It called on the Israeli government to reconsider this “unacceptable” decision.
Turkey, in a separate statement on Sunday, said the Israeli decision was a convenient way to distract public opinion from the fact that the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli officials over alleged crimes in Gaza.
Azerbaijan and Israel have close ties, and Baku is one of Israel’s major oil suppliers, while Israel sells advanced weaponry to the Azerbaijani government.
Turkey and Azerbaijan also see each other as close allies. Under the 2021 Shusha Declaration, both sides are obliged to support each other if either is attacked by a foreign party.
Last year, Baku sought to ease tensions between Turkey and Israel over Syria and Gaza by hosting talks between the two sides.
Read more: Azerbaijan issues rare rebuke against key ally Israel over Armenian genocide recognition
Members of the Armenian community in Israel hold banners as well as Armenian and Israeli national flags in Tel Aviv on 6 November 2020 (AFP)