UK and Azerbaijan agree strategic partnership covering trade and defence industry

The UK and Azerbaijan have elevated their relationship to a Strategic Partnership through a joint declaration adopted in Dublin on 12 November 2026. The document builds on earlier declarations from 1994 and 1998 and is organised around three pillars: defence and security, economy and trade, and education, science and innovation.

Both governments say they want to broaden bilateral trade and investment and encourage long-term commercial partnerships. Priority sectors named include renewable energy, infrastructure and services, with a stated aim of promoting business-to-business links that create jobs, skills and value in both economies.

The declaration also commits both sides to support the development of the Middle Corridor, together with transport, logistics and infrastructure projects that ease cross-border trade and investment. The Joint Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation is named as the main platform for joint work on investment, economic diversification, Middle Corridor development and energy cooperation.

On defence, the two countries will focus on training, capacity building and interoperability. They will also explore ways to strengthen defence industry cooperation, including joint initiatives in areas of shared interest. The text adds closer law enforcement, border management and judicial collaboration.

The partners will cooperate on the clean energy transition, covering renewable energy development, green finance and low-carbon technologies. They will also explore deeper links between financial and capital markets, with a view to supporting sustainable investment, trade finance, SME growth and green finance.

An annual Strategic Partnership meeting will review progress across the three pillars, set priorities and agree practical next steps. The declaration states that cooperation is subject to available resources and to each country's laws and regulations.