Russia, Azerbaijan foil US security threat against Russian diplomat, says Russian intelligence chief

Shafaq News/ Russian and Azerbaijani intelligence services jointly thwarted a security threat from the United States targeting a Russian diplomat, Russia's foreign intelligence chief Sergey Naryshkin said on Thursday.

In a press statement, Naryshkin revealed that intelligence agents from both countries had recently "foiled a provocative threat from the Americans against a Russian diplomat," without providing further details.

Naryshkin’s comments followed his official two-day visit to Baku, where he met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and held discussions with leaders of Azerbaijan’s Foreign Intelligence Service and State Security Service, according to a statement from the Russian intelligence agency.

The statement pointed out that Russian and Azerbaijani intelligence services bear a growing responsibility to "uncover hostile plots by international terrorist organizations promptly." It also highlighted their focus on "identifying the hostile aspirations of Western intelligence agencies aimed at destabilizing the political situation in both of our countries."

Speaking to reporters, Naryshkin noted that the Russian intelligence delegation held "professional discussions with the Azerbaijani side regarding state security issues." He added that during his meeting with President Aliyev, they discussed "various aspects of cooperation between our countries as well as several issues related to the international agenda."