What are the reasons for Putin's visit to Azerbaijan?

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Baku on Sunday for a two-day state visit.

According to the statement released by the Kremlin regarding Putin's plans for his visit to Baku, the main official and business activities were scheduled for August 19: "He will discuss with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev the situation and prospects for bilateral cooperation, as well as current international and regional issues."

Putin's visit to Baku was not received uniformly in the Ukrainian media. His last visit to Azerbaijan took place in September 2018.

Political commentator Nasimi Mammadli discussed the purpose of Putin's visit to Baku on the program "Complex Question."

According to him, Putin's visit to Azerbaijan was driven by the necessity to discuss global and regional geopolitics, as well as bilateral relations. Regarding global issues, the expert believes that the focus was likely on finding a way for Russia to emerge from the negative situation caused by its aggression against Ukraine.

Mammadli suggested that regional politics, particularly within the framework of the "3+3" platform, which is designed to unite the three South Caucasus countries (Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Armenia) with three major regional powers (Turkey, Iran, and Russia), could not have been overlooked.

At the same time, he noted that Azerbaijan is a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and cooperates with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), where Russia is also represented.

"Therefore, there are many issues that require discussion between the leaders of the two countries. In particular, regional security matters," said Mammadli, adding that aside from this, there are numerous other issues that need to be addressed by the heads of Azerbaijan and Russia in a bilateral format.

The political analyst noted that Vladimir Putin could have postponed his visit to Azerbaijan in light of the operation being carried out by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Russia's Kursk region. However, for several reasons, he did not do so.

"Most likely, Putin does not want to show concern over the enemy's actions and wishes to demonstrate the consistency of his political priorities. Furthermore, in this situation, Azerbaijan is extremely important for Russia in terms of logistics and its future prospects in the South Caucasus," Mammadli said.