Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, top stories this morning

● The fourth Baku Security Forum has opened in Baku under the theme “New Challenges in the Global Security Architecture and the Development of Effective Cooperation Mechanisms in the Fight Against Terrorism”. The event is attended by heads and senior representatives of international organisations and intelligence agencies from more than 100 countries. President Ilham Aliyev addressed the participants, stressing the importance of the conference, as “the scale and threatening nature of today’s challenges require intensified cooperation and the use of flexible and coordinated approaches”.

● Among the participants at the Baku Security Forum is the head of Armenia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, Kristinne. It is reported that an Armenian delegation also participated in the third edition of the forum in Baku. On that occasion, officials from Armenia’s National Security Service travelled to Azerbaijan. The delegation was headed by NSS chief Andranik Simonyan.

● Speaking at the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, Donald Trump named the Armenia–Azerbaijan settlement as one of eight conflicts resolved with his involvement. He quoted the leaders of both countries: “President Ilham Aliyev said that President Trump had performed an absolute miracle in six months, something no one thought possible. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the breakthrough achieved would not have been possible without Trump’s personal involvement and firm commitment to peace. It was personal relationships with the leaders, trade, tariffs and the threat of imposing them that helped achieve these agreements,” Trump said.

● Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov held a series of meetings on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly session with the foreign ministers of Switzerland, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Pakistan, Iran, Djibouti, Singapore, Colombia, Bangladesh and Hungary.

● Following a meeting between the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Colombia, an agreement was signed on the mutual abolition of visa requirements for all types of passports.

● Following a meeting between the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Bangladesh, an agreement was signed on the mutual abolition of visa requirements for diplomatic, official and service passports.

● In an address to the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said his country’s position on the South Caucasus was “crystal clear”. “We want lasting peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and we welcome and support the determination demonstrated by President Ilham Aliyev and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in reaching a settlement,” Erdoğan said. He also noted that Turkey and Armenia had made progress in the process of normalising bilateral relations.

● Azerbaijan suspended flights operated by Iranian airlines on 22 September as part of its implementation of a new US sanctions package against Iran. The Azerbaijani embassy in Iran will assist its citizens in returning home via land border crossings.

● President Ilham Aliyev said the development of the mining industry was a priority. To this end, the Western Industrial Park structure has been established to oversee the exploitation of the Dashkesan ore deposit and the implementation of other projects in neighbouring areas. “Within the shortest possible time, infrastructure and a complete mining industry value chain must be created, right through to the production of the final product,” the president said.

● At a meeting on the state programme for the development of the mining industry for 2027–2030, Ilham Aliyev claimed that “during the occupation, the Armenian state destroyed, looted, cut down and sold 60,000 hectares of forest in the Kalbajar, Lachin and Zangilan districts”. “And after the Second Karabakh War, forests were burned when Armenian armed forces were supposed to leave the Kalbajar and Lachin districts. They were given two to three weeks, and during that time they destroyed trees. And they did not forget to take plumbing fixtures with them. Apparently, these were the two most important issues for them,” Aliyev said.

● Ilham Aliyev: “If we look at the country’s overall economic growth rates, they are not particularly high. There are natural reasons for this, primarily the decline in oil production. Our main oil field, Azeri–Chirag–Gunashli, has been in operation for around 30 years, and production is naturally declining for objective reasons. At the same time, new projects will allow us to maintain oil production in Azerbaijan at the necessary level and, hopefully, even ensure growth. However, this is precisely why overall economic growth today, GDP growth, stands at 1.2%. This should not concern us, because a more important indicator is the development of the non-oil sector. Here, over the past eight months, meaning the first eight months of the current year, growth of 5.4% has been recorded. The state programmes that have been adopted will also make this growth sustainable and long-term.”

● Ilham Aliyev said there was a strong possibility of major deposits being found in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. “Geological exploration there — both during the Soviet period and later — was not carried out at the necessary level. It will begin next year,” he said.

● Ilham Aliyev: “Under the new state programme, aluminium production in Azerbaijan will be increased to 100,000 tonnes by the end of 2030. Several plants will be built for this purpose.”

● Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov: “One of our long-term goals is to turn Azerbaijan into a regional processing hub for strategic minerals.”

● The first court hearing in the appeal case involving nine journalists convicted in the ToplumTV case, with sentences ranging from 12 to 15 years, ended in controversy. Seven of the nine defendants were successively removed from the courtroom after sharply criticising the panel of judges. The journalists said it was the same judicial panel that had “disgracefully handled the appeal hearings in the AbzasMedia case”. During the AbzasMedia appeal hearings in August last year, the journalists also objected to Judge Zafar Ahmadov presiding, citing his lack of judicial experience.

The verdict in the ToplumTV case was issued in July this year on charges including smuggling, money laundering and illegal entrepreneurship, among other offences. The journalists deny any wrongdoing and describe the charges as politically motivated. According to human rights defenders, Azerbaijan currently has 328 political prisoners. A number of international human rights organisations, as well as PACE and the European Parliament, have called on Azerbaijan to end political persecution.

● Economist Fazil Gasimov, who has been in detention for more than three years, has been on hunger strike since 19 September. He is protesting the failure to consider his appeal. Gasimov also claims that investigative authorities fabricated a document in his name in order to remove the lawyers who were genuinely defending his rights. The prosecution has presented a statement allegedly signed by him requesting that his interests be represented exclusively by another lawyer. Gasimov, however, says he did not sign such a statement. The Centre for Alternative Expertise also confirmed that the signature on the document does not belong to Gasimov.

● Azerbaijani Popular Front Party member Razi Alishov, who is in detention, is experiencing serious health problems. His family says he is no longer able to walk. “He said that he recently underwent a medical examination, and a doctor diagnosed him with a herniated disc. However, no diagnostic imaging or treatment was carried out to confirm the diagnosis, while his condition has significantly deteriorated,” the family said. Recently, many imprisoned civil society activists, journalists and opposition representatives have repeatedly complained of deteriorating health, as well as a lack of necessary medical examinations and treatment. The Penitentiary Service, in turn, consistently states that medical care is provided to prisoners in accordance with the law.

● State-owned Azerenerji and Turkish company YEO Teknoloji Enerji ve Endüstri A.Ş. have signed a contract to establish a battery energy storage system with a capacity of 250 MWh. The project includes all stages — design, procurement and construction — and has a total value of $58.6 million. Financing will be provided by local banks, with a four-year repayment period. According to the project, the entire system will be commissioned within one year. In the second quarter of this year, YEO commissioned two energy storage systems in Azerbaijan with a combined capacity of 500 MWh. The contracts for those projects were signed in 2025.

● Uzbekistan has established a working group to explore the possibility of participating in the construction of a railway from Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic to Turkey, with connections to the ports of Samsun and Istanbul. Uzbekistan’s Transport Ministry said that during recent visits by President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Georgia and Azerbaijan, instructions were issued regarding the use of Caspian Sea infrastructure, the purchase of ferries and equity participation in the construction of the Azerbaijani railway. It is reported that a separate working group has been established for each of these areas.

● Azerbaijan does not recognise the so-called “presidential elections” held in Georgia’s Tskhinvali region or their results, according to a statement by the Foreign Ministry. The ministry stressed that Azerbaijan once again reaffirmed its support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

● Joint military exercises titled “Strength of Unity – 2026” have begun, involving military personnel from Azerbaijan, Turkey and Uzbekistan.

● Since the beginning of the year, Azerbaijan has increased crude oil supplies to Bulgaria by more than 4.5 times compared with the same period last year.

● Higher education institutions in Baku and government officials working at the Government House will switch to temporary remote learning and work from tomorrow due to the Azerbaijan Formula 1 Grand Prix, taking place on 24–26 September.

Photo bt Orkhan Musayev

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 14-18 September, 2026