Azerbaijan has suspended all planned cultural events in collaboration with Russian state and private organizations following the deaths of two Azerbaijani citizens during a police raid in Yekaterinburg, Russia.

The Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan confirmed on June 28 that Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov were killed during the operation carried out by Russian authorities. The Azerbaijani government has labeled the incident as "ethnically motivated public and deliberate unlawful actions," further claiming that such actions by Russia have become "systematic" in nature.

The raid was reportedly linked to an ongoing investigation into an unsolved 2001 murder case. Several individuals were injured, and nine were detained in the operation.

Sayfaddin Huseynli, a relative of the deceased, told Azerbaijani public broadcaster ITV that the two men were "tortured to death without any trial or investigation, despite their innocence." Russian authorities have yet to release an official cause of death.

In response to the incident, Azerbaijan has also cancelled a planned visit by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk, citing that it is "not appropriate under the current circumstances for Overchuk or any other official representative of Russia to visit."

This episode adds to the rising tensions between Baku and Moscow. Relations have deteriorated since the downing of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane by Russian forces earlier this year, killing all 67 passengers on board. Azerbaijani lawmakers have also blamed Russia for a cyberattack in February, and President Ilham Aliyev notably skipped the Victory Day parade in Moscow in May.

Amid the diplomatic fallout, Ukraine has sought to strengthen ties with Azerbaijan. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha visited Baku in May, and earlier this year, Azerbaijan pledged $1 million in humanitarian aid to Ukraine, providing electrical equipment to bolster the country’s energy infrastructure amid ongoing Russian assaults.

Meanwhile, Armenia, a long-standing ally of Russia, has also distanced itself from Moscow. In a significant shift, Yerevan began its EU accession process earlier this year following Russia's failure to intervene during Azerbaijan’s 2023 offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh, which led to a large-scale exodus of ethnic Armenians. (ILKHA)