Azerbaijan–Iran relations

Official diplomatic relations between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Islamic Republic of Iran were established following the dissolution of the Soviet Union (1991). Iran and Azerbaijan share, to a large extent, the same history, religion, and culture. The territory of what is now called the Republic of Azerbaijan was separated from Iran in the first half of the 19th century, through the Russo-Persian Wars. In the area to the North of the river Aras, the territory of the contemporary Republic of Azerbaijan was part of Iran until it was occupied by Russia. Iran and Azerbaijan are both majority Shia Muslim nations. They have respectively the highest and second highest Shia population percentage in the world, as well as the history of Shi'ism which is rooted in both nations from exactly the same moment in history, whereas the majority of the population of both their neighboring nations are either predominantly Christians or Sunni Muslims.

However, in recent decades, there have been some tensions between the two countries as their political alignments vary by degree. The Republic of Azerbaijan has become increasingly pro-Western and is an ally of Israel, Turkey and the United States (the latter two being NATO members), whereas the Islamic Republic of Iran is largely anti-Western and is an ally of China, Palestine and Russia. Iranian politicians, like Mohammad Hosseini, have called Azerbaijan an Israeli proxy.

In May 1918, the Musavat government adopted the name "Azerbaijan" for the newly established Azerbaijan Democratic Republic for political reasons, even though the name of "Azerbaijan" had always been used to refer to the adjacent region of contemporary northwest Iran. As the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, a relatively downwards spiral started in the modern relations between Iran and Azerbaijan. In May 2015, the Ambassador of Iran to Azerbaijan announced that it didn't recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

Iran recognized Azerbaijan's independence in 1991, and diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1992. Iran has an embassy in Baku and a consulate-general in Nakhchivan City. Azerbaijan has an embassy in Tehran and a consulate-general in Tabriz. Both countries are full members of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).