Amid heavy losses and damage to its reputation in the war with Israel, Iran’s leadership is seeking to shift blame by targeting external “culprits” instead of accepting political and military responsibility for the defeat. Recently, the claims spread against Azerbaijan clearly show that Tehran has turned the information war into a primary tool to cover up its military failures.
The main thesis is that Azerbaijan’s territory was allegedly used in Israel’s military operations against Iran. These claims are not only unsupported by evidence but are also baseless and absurd from a military-technical standpoint. As the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev emphasized, Azerbaijan will never allow its territory to be used against third countries. This stance has been expressed officially and firmly.
Iran’s fabricated provocations: Claims detached from reality and facts
However, some political circles and propaganda machinery in Iran circulate unserious, and sometimes even ridiculous, fabrications. For example, one "news report" spread by Iranian media claims that a soldier stationed in Ardabil shot down an unidentified aerial object coming from the direction of Azerbaijan, which exploded and caused his death. Such primitive provocation stories do not align with military realities, radar observations, or reports from international monitors. If there were indeed concrete evidence as claimed, the Iranian side would have presented these materials—radar records, satellite images, military observations—to the public. However, no facts have been provided so far. Instead, baseless accusations are voiced amid populist rhetoric and religious-political emotions.
Armenia’s double game: Amplifying Iran’s fabrications to escalate tensions
Another interesting aspect of the issue is Armenia. Armenian media and Telegram channels persistently spread such disinformation and have become part of information operations aimed at damaging Iran-Azerbaijan relations. This is, in fact, the next stage of Armenia’s long-standing provocative information strategy, which has been analyzed in the context of “hybrid warfare.” Furthermore, Armenia also seeks to divert attention away from itself in this matter.
EU Mission and Western shadow structures
Statements have been made at various levels regarding the true objectives of the European Union’s observation mission in Armenia. There are serious claims that the mission functions more as a Western intelligence operation rather than an impartial international structure, engaging in espionage activities in the region, particularly against Russia, Iran, and Azerbaijan.
It is possible that recent attacks on Iran’s targeted military-strategic facilities were planned by the US, the UK, and Israel based on intelligence sources and coordinates provided by such entities.
Armenia, however, spreads fabricated “Azerbaijani trail” scenarios to cover up this reality and resorts to information provocations to create tension between Tehran and Baku. Yet, all regional players now clearly understand that Iran’s attempts to cover its internal weaknesses, technological gaps, and intelligence failures not only fail but further expose these vulnerabilities.
Tehran is looking for scapegoats for its defeat: the cause lies internally, and the target is Azerbaijan
In this context, Armenia’s role in sharing this information and becoming part of the game is no coincidence—the goal is clear: to create artificial tension in the South Caucasus and amplify anti-Azerbaijani rhetoric.
All these factors reveal the true essence of Tehran’s “scapegoat search” campaign in the information space. Instead of analyzing and learning from the real causes of military failure—internal weakness, intelligence gaps, technological backwardness—Iran tries to blame Azerbaijan. Furthermore, Tehran should pay attention to threats coming from Armenia, which has become a tool of the EU observation mission, including the possible transmission of intelligence gathered along the border to the West.
Iran needs to learn from the mistakes that led to its defeat and, instead of destabilizing the region, should prioritize constructive relations.
Azerbaijan—the address of stability and trust
Despite these manipulations, Azerbaijan has always demonstrated its adherence to the principles of international law and firmly continues its policy of non-involvement in regional conflicts. This neutral stance makes Azerbaijan a symbol of regional stability and trust—which some forces dislike.
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