Aliyev skips Turkic states summit in Ankara as headscarf dispute exposes deeper strains between Azerbaijan and Türkiye

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev skipped Friday’s Organisation of Turkic States summit in Ankara despite a personal invitation from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, bringing growing tensions between the two close allies into sharper view.

Azerbaijan was represented instead by Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov. Baku offered no official explanation for Aliyev’s absence, while the Azeri-Press Agency said he had previously scheduled commitments in Azerbaijan.

The immediate friction has centered on criticism from Turkish officials of Azerbaijan’s new school-uniform rules restricting headscarves. Azerbaijani officials responded by warning against foreign interference in the country’s internal affairs, without directly naming Türkiye.

Tensions rose further after Azerbaijan declared 31 Turkish nationals persona non grata this month over social media posts critical of Baku. Erdoğan later dismissed adviser Oktay Saral after he publicly attacked Azerbaijan’s headscarf policy.

The dispute appears to reflect broader differences. Ankara has been pursuing normalization with Armenia, while Azerbaijan has sought to ensure that any Turkish opening remains tied to progress between Baku and Yerevan.

The two governments have also taken sharply different positions on Israel. Türkiye has been one of Israel’s strongest critics over the Gaza war, while Azerbaijan maintains close strategic, energy and defense ties with Israel.

At the Ankara summit, Erdoğan stressed unity, saying there was “no place for separation, division, or conflict in our family picture,” without mentioning Azerbaijan directly.

Despite the tensions, defense and energy ties between Ankara and Baku remain deep. Türkiye backed Azerbaijan during the 2023 Nagorno-Karabakh war and remains a major buyer of Azerbaijani natural gas.