Phone call between U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and President Ilham Aliyev

On November 27, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a phone call to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.

During the phone call, President Ilham Aliyev noted that recent statements and steps taken by the United States regarding Azerbaijan have seriously damaged the relations between Azerbaijan and the United States. The head of state mentioned that the remarks made by U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O’Brien at the hearing of the Subcommittee on Europe of the House Foreign Affairs Committee on November 15, 2023, were biased, did not reflect the truth, and were rejected by Azerbaijan.

Secretary of State Blinken requested permission for U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James O’Brien to visit Azerbaijan in December in order to normalize relations. President Ilham Aliyev agreed with that proposal on the condition that after this visit, the unjustified ban on the visits of high-level officials of Azerbaijan to the United States should be removed. Secretary of State Blinken accepted this condition.