Azerbaijani Member of Parliament banned from entering Russia

Russian authorities have banned an Azerbaijani Member of Parliament from entering the country in a move described by Baku as "an unfriendly step."

According to Azerbaijani media reports, MP Azer Badamov was part of a delegation en route to Astrakhan for an event marking the birthday of former Azeri president Heydar Aliyev. 

Badamov was detained at Moscow airport, banned from boarding the flight to Astrakhan and sent back to Azerbaijan. He was told that he is banned from entering Russia. According to Azeri media reports, no explanation was given to the Azerbaijani MP by Russian authorities.

The Azeri foreign ministry, in comments for APA news agency, said it contacted the Russian Foreign Ministry, which said it would investigate the matter. 

“We consider this decision by the Russian side to be an unfriendly step, and we expect Russia to provide a detailed explanation regarding the issue,” the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry told APA.