Balancing Friendships

Azerbaijan's international status has grown significantly in recent months, as it hovers on the periphery of the US-Iran stand-off over the latter's nuclear programme. On April 28, President Ilham Aliev completed a three-day trip to Washington with his first meeting with US counterpart George Bush, where the situation in Iran, along with several other key issues, was discussed. Immediately before the state visit, the Iranian foreign minister was in Baku, and on his return, Aliev met Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, on the fringes of a regional economic summit. Add a booming hydrocarbons sector and expanding military capabilities to this apparent

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