Ilham Aliyev
Ilham Aliyev is an Azerbaijani politician who has served as President of Azerbaijan since 2003, when he succeeded his father Heydar Aliyev. Before assuming the presidency, he led the Azerbaijani National Olympic Committee and was a long-time member of parliament for the New Azerbaijan Party. His presidency has coincided with rapid economic growth driven by the country's oil and gas exports, and with the development of close strategic ties with neighbouring Türkiye.
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EU extends Ukraine-related sanctions three years but removes Usmanov and Fridman; Azerbaijan pardons French citizen Ryan
On 22 September 2026, the EU Council extended restrictive measures against persons responsible for undermining Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence for another 36 months — until 22 September 2029 — in the first such three-year renewal rather than the usual six-month review. At the same time the EU removed Russian oligarchs Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the list, a move reportedly pushed by France, Slovakia and Luxembourg and not coordinated with Ukraine. The next day, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev pardoned 20 people, including French citizen Martin Ryan, who had been convicted of espionage in Azerbaijan.