Azerbaijan president: Secret German-Russian meetings held in Baku without our knowledge

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev revealed on Tuesday that flight data indicates secret meetings between former and current German and Russian officials took place in Baku this month. This marks Azerbaijan's first confirmation of such individuals visiting the country's capital.

According to a joint investigation by German newspaper Die Zeit and public broadcaster ARD, former high-ranking German officials Ronald Pofalla and Matthias Placek have been holding clandestine meetings in Baku since 2024 with close associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin. These associates include Gazprom board chairman Viktor Zubkov and Valeriy Fadeyev, who is currently under European Union sanctions.

Aliyev stated that Baku began investigating the allegations after learning about the meetings through media reports. "We received no information from either Germany or Russia. In other words, our territory was simply used without our knowledge," Aliyev said. He noted that flight data shows Pofalla, former chief of staff to ex-German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Placek traveled from Berlin to Baku on July 12 and returned on July 14. During the same period, Zubkov and Fadeyev were also reportedly in Baku.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated he was unaware of such a meeting. Aliyev added that he could not provide details about the July meeting but expressed hope that if it contributes to ending the Russia-Ukraine war, "then, of course, we welcome it." The German Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Last year, similar meetings in Baku between German politicians and Russian officials had already raised concerns among German lawmakers about potential informal channels for Moscow to influence Berlin's stance on the Ukraine war.