State of Tehran-Baku Relations
During his talks with Kharrazi, the Azeri president welcomed the expansion of Tehran-Baku relations, stressing that no one can create obstacles to the expansion of these relations. He also once again expressed hope to visit Tehran.
Indeed, the cultural, historical and religious affinities between the Iranian and Azeri nations have prepared an appropriate ground for more extensive cooperation between Tehran and Baku, especially in the field of energy.
Nevertheless, despite all these affinities, the relations between Iran and Azerbaijan Republic are not only below the potentials of the two neighbors, but what is more unfortunate is that the differences and disagreements between Tehran and Baku over the new legal regime of the Caspian Sea still remain unresolved.
It seems that the factors hindering the favorable growth of Tehran-Baku relations have roots in the policies of certain outside powers and their influence on the Baku government. In other words, if Azeri officials review the reasons for the ups and downs in their relations with Tehran, they will find out that their submission to U.S. policies has been the main reason in this regard.
A clear instance of outside pressure and influence on Baku can be seen in President Aliyev's repeated promises to visit Tehran, but these visits have never been materialized - each time on a certain pretext. This gives one the idea that the green light for the visit should come from somewhere outside Azerbaijan Republic!
The Azeri president has said that no one can create obstacles to the expansion of Tehran-Baku relations, but in reality some Azeri state media and certain publications dubbed "unofficial" have always been trying to undermine friendly relations between the two countries.
Therefore, as long as the Baku government allows the overt U.S. pressure and covert Israeli sabotage to influence its relations with Tehran, the expansion of relations and cooperation between the two countries will be very difficult, if not impossible.