Turkey-Azerbaijan-India Relations: Geopolitical tensions have flared in recent months between India on one side and Turkey and Azerbaijan on the other.
The antagonism is fuelled by a complex mix of historical alliances, regional ambitions and recent geopolitical realignments. While economic ties with India are nontrivial, both Turkey and Azerbaijan increasingly position themselves in ways that run counter to New Delhis strategic interests.
Turkeys support for Pakistan has grown especially since Indias Operation Sindoor. When India obliterated nine terrorist targets in Pakistan and Pakistanadministered Kashmir in early May following a deadly terror attack on tourists at Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, Ankara condemned the strikes and warned of a risk of allout war. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoan conveyed solidarity with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a phone call, praising Islamabads calm and restrained reaction and offering diplomatic help.
On the other hand, Indias Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) urged Ankara to curb its support for cross-border terrorism and take credible and verifiable actions against the terror ecosystem it is accused of harbouring.
Turkey-Pakistan Islamic Solidarity
Turkey has historical and ideological bonds with Pakistan. Ankara has consistently backed Islamabad on the Kashmir issue, echoing Islamic solidarity and positioning itself as a vocal advocate for Muslim-majority nations. This ideological affinity has translated into a strong military cooperation. Turkey supplies Pakistan with drones, including Asisguard and Songar models.
India claims that between 300 and 400 Turkish-made drones were used by Pakistan in attempted cross-border infiltrations and attacks on military installations on May 8-9, citing serious sovereignty violations. In addition, Indian forces recovered a Turkish kamikaze drone from Naushera in Jammu & Kashmir, raising alarm over foreign-made combat equipment being used in frontline hostilities.
This deepening Turkey-Pakistan nexus has been described not merely as a friendship, but as a strategic bloc that actively counters Indian influence. When Pakistan and Turkey want to challenge India diplomatically or militarily, they do so in tandem, making New Delhis security calculus more complicated.
An Ally To Turkey, Counterweight To India
Azerbaijan, too, strongly sided with Pakistan, condemning Indias military offensive. Baku issued a statement calling for restraint and a diplomatic resolution, positioning itself clearly in opposition to New Delhis actions.
Behind this diplomacy is a deeper strategic alliance. Turkey and Azerbaijan formalised a close defense and economic partnership through the 2021 Shusha Declaration, which includes joint arms manufacturing, military drills and the transformation of Azerbaijan into a regional defense production hub.
The declaration also emphasises infrastructure cooperation, especially via the Middle Corridor that links Central Asia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, reinforcing long-term geopolitical and economic ties.
Azerbaijans hostility toward India is partly rooted in its own geopolitical faultlines. One key issue is Armenia. India has developed defense ties with Armenia, supplying weapons systems like the Akash surface-to-air missile. Because Armenia is in territorial conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, New Delhis friendship with Yerevan irks Baku.
The Three-Brother Alliance
Turkey, Azerbaijan and Pakistan now operate in a loose trilateral framework sometimes referred to as the Three Brothers alliance. They hold joint military exercises, support each other in international forums and back each others territorial or ideological claims such as Kashmir for Pakistan and certain regional ambitions for Turkey and Azerbaijan.
This alliance is not only symbolic but also directly challenges Indias strategic choices.
Recent Developments Fuelling The Rift
The consequences for India are tangible. The diplomatic fallout has triggered a strong public backlash: many Indian travellers cancelled trips to Turkey and Azerbaijan, and there were mounting boycott calls, especially following their support for Pakistan after Operation Sindoor.
On the trade front, New Delhi revoked the security clearance of the Turkish groundhandling firm elebi Airport Services, citing national security concerns linked to Turkeys military cooperation with Pakistan.
India also signalled disapproval through multilateral platforms. It stated that bilateral ties with Turkey must respect each others core concerns, a pointed demand given Ankaras close defense ties with Islamabad.
Meanwhile, Azerbaijan has accused India of blocking its bid for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), framing New Delhis move as retaliation for Bakus support to Pakistan.
Strategic Imperatives And Power Play
For Turkey, aligning with Pakistan and Azerbaijan helps rebuild its influence in Muslim world and assert itself against both Western powers and regional rivals. For Azerbaijan, backing Pakistan and Turkey serves to strengthen its regional alliances, and also push back on Indias growing footprint in the South Caucasus through Armenia.
From Indias perspective, this bloc is a geopolitical challenge. New Delhi sees this tripartite alignment as not just ideological solidarity, but a deliberate strategy to contain Indian influence in South Asia, the Caucasus and beyond.
The opposition of Turkey and Azerbaijan to India is not a matter of mere rhetoric. It is rooted in historical alliances, ideological alignment with Pakistan and geopolitical ambitions. These countries have institutionalised their cooperation through summits (such as the Three-Brother axis) and formal declarations (Shusha Declaration). Their joint stance has become more confrontational in light of recent IndiaPakistan tensions.
India, in response, is recalibrating its own alliances by strengthening ties with Armenia and other regional powers, but the tension with the Turkey-Azerbaijan axis remains a persistent and growing strategic fault line.