Israel's Liberman talks wheat, strategy in visit to Azerbaijan
Officially, the visit of Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman to Azerbaijan focused on exporting wheat to Israel, but reports suggest that the minister also discussed strategic and energy issues.
Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman’s visit to Azerbaijan April 22 was officially intended to discuss economic issues, especially the increased import of petroleum and other products to Israel. At the same time, however, it was also intended to strengthen the security relationship between the two states.
Azerbaijan lies on the northwest border of Iran, the country most hostile to Israel and its most dangerous enemy. But Israel is also the largest supplier of weapons to Azerbaijan. According to SIPRI (the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute), some 60% of Azerbaijan’s defense imports in 2015-2019 originated in Israel, while in 2020, that number jumped to almost 70%.
