Baku (TDI): Azerbaijan’s President, Ilham Aliyev, said on Monday that the country will not send its troops to participate in any peacekeeping mission in the Gaza Strip.
In an interview with Azerbaijani television, Aliyev made it clear that Baku has no intention of deploying military personnel outside its borders, including as part of proposed international efforts to stabilize Gaza.
“I am not considering participation in hostilities outside Azerbaijan at all,” the president said, using strong language to rule out involvement.
Aliyev revealed that Azerbaijan had been in contact with the United States administration, which has been pushing for contributions to an International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza as part of wider peace efforts.
He said Baku sent Washington a detailed list of more than 20 questions about how such a mission would function but ultimately confirmed that no participation is planned.
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While the government’s position has been consistent in recent months, including a previous official note that troops would be sent only if fighting in Gaza completely stops, Aliyev’s latest remarks leave no doubt about the country’s stance.
Baku has emphasized that it does not want to put its soldiers at risk and that any peacekeeping deployment would require an unequivocal ceasefire between Israel and the militant group Hamas before consideration could even begin.
President Ilham Aliyev made it clear that Azerbaijan will not engage in military actions outside its borders, emphasizing that the country will not risk the lives of its citizens for conflicts elsewhere.
While expressing solidarity with Palestine and gratitude for international support, he stressed that past experiences showed Azerbaijan often had to manage its own security without outside protection.
He reiterated that issues in Arab countries, including Palestine, should primarily be addressed by those nations themselves.
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Azerbaijan has previously expressed solidarity with the Palestinian people through diplomatic support, votes at the United Nations, and financial backing for the Palestinian Embassy in Baku.
Nonetheless, the president stressed that military involvement abroad, especially in a volatile theater like Gaza, is not on the table, noting past experiences where Azerbaijan felt left to manage its own security without outside protection.
The comments come amid ongoing international efforts, led in part by Washington, to form a multinational force of around 20,000 troops drawn from various countries to help stabilize Gaza once a ceasefire is in place.
Countries such as Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar, and Turkiye have also been approached about possible participation in the mission.
Minahil Khurshid holds a master’s degree in Peace and Conflict Studies from CIPS, NUST. She has a strong interest in current affairs, geopolitics, and policy analysis.
