India and Azerbaijan seek to reset ties

India and Azerbaijan have started the process of resetting bilateral ties, which were strained amid the brief military struggle between New Delhi and Islamabad last year.

Senior Indian and Azerbaijani officials met in Baku for the 6th round of Foreign Office consultations last week, an official statement said.

Indian Foreign Ministry Secretary (West) Sibi George co-chaired the meeting with Azerbaijani Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Elnur Mammadov.

The officials reviewed the current state of bilateral relations with regards to areas of mutual interest, including trade, technology, tourism, pharmaceuticals, energy, culture, people-to-people exchanges, and the fight against cross-border terrorism.

New Delhi will host the next round of Foreign Office Consultations between the two nations.

The India-Azerbaijan bilateral talks in Baku were the first since 2022.

New Delhi had reportedly been upset with Azerbaijan after the country protested India’s military strikes on Pakistan in the aftermath of several terror attacks in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir in 2025.

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry at the time “condemned military attacks against the Islamic Republic of Pakistan that killed and injured several civilians.”

Baku also urged all parties to “exercise restraint and to resolve the conflict through diplomatic means.”

The ties between New Delhi and Baku have been on the mend recently. Azerbaijan has facilitated the safe passage of more than 200 Indians fleeing US-Israel strikes on Iran.

In September, Baku resumed crude oil exports to New Delhi, which had been halted following a pricing dispute that lasted nearly 10 months. Crude oil accounts for 98% of Azerbaijan’s exports to India.

India’s ONGC Videsh has a stake in oil and gas fields and an energy pipeline in Azerbaijan.