Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Azerbaijan on Sunday, the Kremlin has confirmed, despite Ukraine’s ongoing invasion of the southern Russian region of Kursk.
During the two-day visit, talks are expected to be held with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on developing the strategic partnership between the countries.
The Kremlin said the two leaders will sign several agreements to expand cooperation between the neighboring countries.
Aliyev, like Putin, is an authoritarian leader who has been criticized for serious human rights violations. He last visited Moscow in April.
Putin is expected to comment on peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan, after years of conflict over the mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh region, which Baku seized in 2023.
Russia was traditionally seen as a country close to Armenia, but refused to intervene in favor of Yerevan.
Azerbaijan, an oil-rich republic on the Caspian Sea, is a major energy supplier to the European Union.
However, the country is not a signatory to the Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court (ICC), meaning Putin can travel to the country without fear of being arrested under the international arrest warrant issued by the court for war crimes in Ukraine.
