Azerbaijan has recently escalated its criticism of India, accusing New Delhi of blocking its bid to secure full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The allegation was made in the wake of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during an official engagement in Tianjin, China.

According to reports carried by Azerbaijani and Turkish media, Aliyev claimed that India’s move was driven by “revenge politics,” tied to Baku’s vocal political and diplomatic support for Pakistan in its longstanding conflict with India, particularly during the recent confrontation dubbed Operation Sindoor—New Delhi’s military operation against terror hubs in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir after the Pahalgam terror attack.

Azerbaijani media outlets, including AnewZ, stated that India has “once again” vetoed Azerbaijan’s candidacy for full-fledged membership within the SCO, an intergovernmental Eurasian political and security bloc dominated by China and Russia, where India and Pakistan joined as full members in 2017. 

This rejection was highlighted as a violation of “multilateral diplomacy,” with Azerbaijani commentators suggesting that New Delhi’s actions were an extension of its hostility toward Islamabad, given Baku’s explicit alignment with Pakistan in regional disputes. Azerbaijan had earlier issued official statements voicing concern over rising India-Pakistan tensions, effectively siding with Islamabad at the height of Operation Sindoor.

During his discussions with the Pakistani Prime Minister, President Aliyev not only reiterated Azerbaijan’s “brotherhood” with Pakistan but also lauded Islamabad’s supposed “victory” in its confrontation with India earlier in the year.

This rhetoric underscored Baku’s deepening political and strategic affinity with Islamabad, which spans beyond cultural and religious ties into sectors such as defence cooperation, regional connectivity, and trade.

Both leaders reportedly reviewed prospects for expanding bilateral economic projects under the Azerbaijani-Pakistani intergovernmental commission, with emphasis on enhanced collaboration in energy, infrastructure, and security domains.

Interestingly, the timing of these developments comes against the backdrop of broader geopolitical realignments, where Pakistan’s willingness to consider formalising ties with Armenia—an arch-rival of Azerbaijan—was described as part of a coordinated plan with Baku to further their shared “peace agenda.” Despite this apparent contradiction, Azerbaijani media framed the move as a tactical manoeuvre tied to regional diplomacy.

For India, Azerbaijan’s antagonism dovetails with New Delhi’s growing strategic outreach toward Armenia, including defence cooperation in recent years. Experts note that India’s closeness with Yerevan has aggravated ties with Baku, with the latest SCO membership issue adding another layer of tension.

For Azerbaijan, however, its Islamic solidarity with Pakistan continues to take precedence over repairing its ties with New Delhi. Aliyev’s rhetoric, particularly his glorification of Pakistan’s military stance against India, indicates that Baku is not only consolidating its alliance with Islamabad but also projecting itself as an active player in the South Asian security narrative, even at the cost of alienating major regional actors like India.

These diplomatic manoeuvres point to an increasingly polarised Asian geopolitical arena, where the SCO itself risks becoming yet another platform for India-Pakistan rivalry. With Azerbaijan positioning itself firmly in Islamabad’s corner and India leveraging its role within multilateral organisations to counter Baku’s aspirations, the standoff signals a deeper strategic contest that could extend into other domains such as energy corridors, defence ties, and regional connectivity projects linking Central, South, and West Asia.

Based On A NDTV Report