BAKU, June 30. /TASS/. Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry confirmed the detentions of several people in a police operation in the Baku office of Russia’s Sputnik Azerbaijan news agency.
"On June 30, active search measures were conducted in the office of the affiliate company, with resulted in some detentions," the ministry said in a statement.
According to the ministry, it is investigating a tip-off alleging that Sputnik Azerbaijan used "illegal financing" to continue operations after its accreditation was suspended in February 2025.
In February, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry announced that Sputnik was ending its activities in the country. Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ayhan Hajizadeh said that the Russian company could receive accreditation for only one correspondent.
Sputnik said they had not received any formal ban preventing them from working in Azerbaijan. A dialogue was underway between working groups to settle possible disagreements, it said.