The Eurovision Song Contest is officially a European music competition, yet it includes participation from countries outside the geographical borders of Europe. Among them are Israel, a long-time regular participant, as well as Australia, and this year, Azerbaijan.

In the most recent Eurovision contest, something quite surprising occurred: three of the countries’ representatives were Jewish and identified with the people of Israel. These were the contestants from Israel, Luxembourg, and Azerbaijan. What stood out most about the Israeli representative, Yuval Raphael, and the Azerbaijani representative, Asaf Mishaev, was not only that Azerbaijan sent a Jewish contestant but that Israel was represented by someone of Azerbaijani heritage.

Leaders of both countries congratulated one another. In fact, Baku awarded Israel the coveted “douze points” in the contest. Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, publicly thanked his Azerbaijani counterpart, General Zakir Hasanov, for Azerbaijan’s support and high score. According to Katz, Azerbaijan’s actions – supporting Israel after October 7, mediating between Israel and Turkey, and awarding Israel 12 points in Eurovision – are “proof of the true and sincere friendship between the two countries.”

This friendship is nothing new in the Middle East.

Azerbaijan is true friend of Israel

Israel and Azerbaijan have enjoyed strong bilateral relations for over two decades. Not only are the two countries on good terms, but Israel is considered Azerbaijan’s closest ally (aside from Turkey), and they share robust cooperation across several sectors. For instance, Israel has become Azerbaijan’s largest arms supplier in recent years, including during the difficult days of the Second Karabakh War.

Yuval Raphael at the Eurovision final, May 17, 2025. (credit: Alma Bengtsson/EBU)
Yuval Raphael at the Eurovision final, May 17, 2025. (credit: Alma Bengtsson/EBU)
 

On the other hand, despite being a majority Shia Muslim country (albeit secular), Azerbaijan showed unwavering support for Israel following Hamas’s attack on October 7.

The first telecommunications companies in Azerbaijan were Israeli, and today, Azerbaijan is Israel’s top energy supplier. Recently, the two nations deepened their energy partnership when the Azerbaijani energy company SOCAR was granted a license to explore Israel’s economic waters for natural gas. One could say that Israel and Azerbaijan now cooperate regularly, almost on a daily basis.

Common enemy: Iran

As previously noted, the two countries also collaborate extensively in the field of defense, including joint military exercises. However, this cooperation didn’t emerge in a vacuum but rather from a shared strategic need. Both Israel and Azerbaijan face a common enemy: a country that lies on Azerbaijan’s southern border and is committed to the destruction of the State of Israel – the Islamic Republic of Iran.

What began as a survival-driven alliance in the harsh environment of the Middle East has evolved into a broader and deeper relationship. Unfortunately, this close friendship has done nothing to soften the position of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), which continues to act aggressively toward both nations.

In Iran – a country whose regime is openly hostile to the West (calling the United States “the Great Satan” and Israel “the Little Satan”) – the latest Eurovision was watched closely, despite the cultural stigma attached to it. Much to the delight of the global LGBTQ+ community, including those in Iran, it appeared the Iranian regime was more enraged by Azerbaijan’s “douze points” to Israel and the leaders’ public gestures of friendship than by the revealing and provocative clothing worn by some performers – a common sight in Eurovision.

But jokes aside, Iran took the “new cooperation” between its two sworn enemies very seriously. The fact that Azerbaijan was represented by a Jewish contestant – a “descendant of Moses and Aaron” – and Israel by a singer of Azerbaijani descent was seen as an affront to Islamic unity. Iran’s semi-official news agency, Fars News, conveyed the IRGC’s message, stating that the backgrounds of the two representatives served as proof of deepening ties between Israel and Azerbaijan.

Fars went on to describe the relationship as “disgraceful and secretive ties” and didn’t stop there. “The bitter truth is out,” the report read, “Not one nation in two countries, but two nations in one state – a state that divides the Islamic world.” This final line is somewhat strange, as the slogan “One Nation, Two States” is typically used to describe Turkey and Azerbaijan, not the relationship between Azerbaijan and Israel.

Still, this rhetoric – while published under the Fars News name – clearly reflects the views of Iran’s hardline clerical regime. It reveals the depth of animosity that the ayatollahs feel toward both countries – two nations that are unafraid of Iranian power and are now openly working together to counter it.

The Revolutionary Guard didn’t stop at words. Their outrage was translated into military exercises along Iran’s northern border with Azerbaijan. During the drills, the Guard broadcast threats in Azerbaijani Turkish in an attempt to intimidate those across the border. 

One of the slogans used was: “The road to Jerusalem passes through Baku” – a direct warning to Azerbaijan to cease its cooperation with Israel or face consequences. It was also a threat to Israel to refrain from operating near Iranian territory.

This suggests that Iran still views Azerbaijan as an Israeli proxy that threatens the Revolutionary Guard’s influence.

You may wonder: How did we go from a music competition to a new escalation in the ongoing Iran-Azerbaijan-Israel conflict?

Welcome to the Middle East, a complicated neighborhood where anything can quickly escalate into a political, geopolitical, military, or religious dispute.

Don’t worry – next week, there will be a new scandal to inflame another conflict.

The writer is a Middle East scholar and commentator on the region.