Azerbaijan’s expanding role on its southern flank highlights the deepening strategic fusion between the Middle East and the Caucasus, two regions long treated as distinct geopolitical spheres.

Axar.az informs Eurasianet stated this in a commentary titled "Azerbaijan and Caucasus-Middle East reconnection".

"With Russia and Iran distracted and diminished, Baku has gained room to project influence as an emerging player in the Arab world. Its location grants the South Caucasus nation disproportionate sway over regional energy and security dynamics. These factors strengthen the case for repealing Section 907, which constrains US engagement with Baku despite Azerbaijan’s growing value to Washington’s efforts to forge a new balance of power in the Middle East.

On October 18, US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper met with Azerbaijani Defense Minister Col. Gen. Zakir Hasanov—an unusual engagement given that Azerbaijan falls under US European Command, rather than CENTCOM’s purview. The meeting signaled a quiet expansion of Washington’s regional coordination. That same day, the Times of Israel reported that Baku had agreed to contribute troops to the International Stabilization Force (ISF) responsible for Gaza’s postwar security, following an understanding between the Trump administration and President Ilham Aliyev.

As Politico noted on October 15, Azerbaijan—along with Pakistan and Indonesia—has emerged as a leading Muslim nation interested in joining the ISF. Negotiations over the force’s structure are ongoing. Aliyev’s participation in the October 13 Sharm-el-Sheikh summit that sealed the Gaza ceasefire further underscored Baku’s growing stature as a Muslim-majority US partner linking Eurasia and the Middle East’s evolving security architecture.

Azerbaijan’s close ties with both Turkiye and Israel have made it a pivotal actor in the emerging regional balance. Baku is uniquely positioned to mediate between its two key partners, whose interests often diverge, particularly in Syria. Between May and July, Azerbaijan facilitated three rounds of talks between Ankara and Jerusalem over their respective zones of control in Syria. In parallel, Aliyev deepened engagement with Syria’s transitional leadership, culminating in President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s July 12–13 visit to Baku (their second meeting since April), where the two sides signed a landmark deal to export Azerbaijani gas to Syria via Turkiye.

Baku’s role as a key intermediary between Turkiye and Israel directly advances US interests by reducing Washington’s burden to ensure regional stability. Closer to home, Baku can play an even more consequential role in US efforts to manage a transitional Iran. Already, Azerbaijan, Armenia, and the United States have signed a trilateral agreement establishing the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), linking Azerbaijan with its exclave Nakhchivan via southern Armenia along the Iranian border. As the Islamic Republic faces internal upheaval and mounting pressure to engage with Washington, Azerbaijan’s strategic support is set to become increasingly indispensable," reads the article.

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