Iran Warns Azerbaijan of Exploiting Third Parties to Threaten Its Security

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan (EPA)
Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan (EPA)
TT

Iran Warns Azerbaijan of Exploiting Third Parties to Threaten Its Security

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan (EPA)
Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan (EPA)

Iran affirmed its "good" relations with Azerbaijan, despite Tehran's accusation that the military maneuvers on the border are being used to launch Israeli activity, which Baku denies.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry warned Azerbaijan against allowing "third parties" to act against it, saying it knows "how to maintain its security."

Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said that Armenia shares Iran's concern about the alleged Israeli presence in Azerbaijan.

Amirabdollahian said at a joint press conference in Tehran with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan that "we are witnessing the presence of foreign terrorists and the destructive activities of the Zionist regime in the region."

In a press conference, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said that the Armenian foreign minister's visit to Tehran was pre-scheduled to expand bilateral relations.

The spokesman said his country enjoys good relations with both Baku and Yerevan, and its relations with one nation are not against another, according to a report by the Iranian news agency (IRNA).

Khatibzadeh was asked about "the presence of terrorists" in Azerbaijan near the Iranian border. He indicated that Iran had received reports on this issue since the war between Baku and Yerevan.

"We have informed our friends in Baku, and they asserted during the various meetings that there is no threat to other countries."

Turkey brought "Syrian mercenaries" from northern Syria to Azerbaijan to help fight against Armenia in the Nagorno-Karabakh region last year.

Khatibzadeh noted that Tehran informed Baku from the beginning that it recognizes Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and national sovereignty, and it helped preserve it.

Baku should not allow its borders and country to be used by third parties against Iran, asserted the spokesman.

"Iran knows how to maintain its security, and it is only right that Baku fulfills its sovereign duties," said Khatibzadeh about allegations that the Israelis used Azerbaijan's territory to conduct activities inside Iran.

Khatibzadeh addressed the joint Turkish-Azerbaijani drills in Nakhchivan, saying everyone must help bring peace, stability, and calm to this region.

"Unfortunately, many military maneuvers have been conducted in this region without any justification during the past weeks."

Turkey and Azerbaijan launched their joint military maneuvers days after Iran started similar drills near its border.

Turkish Defense Ministry spokeswoman Pinar Kara said the "Steadfast Brotherhood-2021" drill would occur in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, between 5-8 October.

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan rejected allegations of foreign intervention in its affairs, saying it pursues an independent policy based on national interests.

"We do not accept the allegations about the presence of any third forces near the Azerbaijan-Iran border … these views have no basis," Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Leyla Abdullayeva said.

She emphasized the importance of "friendly and good-neighborly relations with neighboring countries."

Abdullayeva stressed that Azerbaijan supports the establishment of relations with all countries based on respect for each other's international borders, which is the unchanging position of the country.

She recalled that Azerbaijan has suffered for decades from the military occupation of part of its territory and the violation of its international borders.

The spokesperson stressed that the inviolability of internationally recognized borders is one of the fundamental principles Azerbaijan has always been guided by.



Rescue Teams Search for Missing in Bosnia’s Floods

A damaged car is seen after flood hit the village of Donja Jablanica, Bosnia, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP)
A damaged car is seen after flood hit the village of Donja Jablanica, Bosnia, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP)
TT

Rescue Teams Search for Missing in Bosnia’s Floods

A damaged car is seen after flood hit the village of Donja Jablanica, Bosnia, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP)
A damaged car is seen after flood hit the village of Donja Jablanica, Bosnia, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (AP)

Rescuers dug through rubble in the village of Donja Jablanica on Saturday morning in search for people who went missing in Bosnia's deadliest floods in years that hit the Balkan country on Friday.

The N1 TV reported that 21 people died and that dozens went missing in the Jablanica area, 70 kilometers (43.5 miles)southwest of Sarajevo.

The government is due to hold a press conference later.

"There are some villages in the area that still cannot be reached, and we don't know what we will find there," said a spokesperson for the Mountain Rescue Service whose teams are involved in search.

Heavy rain overnight halted search, Bosnian media reported, but as it stopped the search continued. In Donja Jablanica many houses were still under rubble.

Nezima Begovic, 62, was lucky. Her house is damaged, but she came out unhurt.

"I heard people screaming and suddenly it was all quiet. Then I said everyone is dead there," she told Reuters.

Due to flash flooding on Friday a quarry above Donja Jablanica collapsed and rubble poured over houses and cars in the village.

Enes Imamovic, 66, said he was woken by loud noises at around 5 a.m. (0300 GMT) on Friday.

"Everything was white (from the stones and dust that came down from the quarry), My friends' house was gone. I heard screams," Imamovic told Reuters.

The Bosnian Football Association (NFSBIH) has postponed all matches due to floods.

Bosnia's election commission decided to postpone local elections this weekend in municipalities affected by floods, but to carry on with voting elsewhere.

The floods follow an unprecedented summer drought which caused many rivers and lakes to dry up, and affected agriculture and the supply of water to urban areas throughout the Balkans and much of Europe.

Meteorologists said extreme weather changes can be attributed to climate change.