2021 in Azerbaijan

This is a list of individuals and events related to Azerbaijan in 2021.

Incumbents

4 January – Azerbaijani grandmaster Teimour Radjabov wins the Airthings Masters tournament of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour.
18 January –
* COVID-19 pandemic: Mass COVID-19 vaccination begins in Azerbaijan, with Sinovac shots.
* Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says that Armenia has returned all Azerbaijani prisoners who were captured during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.
21 January – The presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, Ilham Aliyev and Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, reach an agreement to jointly develop a hydrocarbon field, which was disputed between the two countries for around 30 years, in the Caspian Sea.
APFP member Niyameddin Ahmedov faces new charges of incitement and trafficking in banned items; police allegedly beat him in custody.

Mehdi Ibrahimov receives a 15-month suspended sentence on bogus charges of spreading COVID-19.

8 March – Police disperse a women’s rights march in Baku, detaining at least 25 participants, including multiple human rights defenders.
A presidential pardon releases nearly 40 opposition activists, journalists, and human rights defenders. APFP member Mahammad Imanli is also pardoned.

APFP activist Said Mamedzade Bakuvi is sentenced to three-and-a-half years for hooliganism, it is later replaced with a suspended sentence.

13 May – Armenia accuses Azerbaijan of sending troops across the border in a disputed incident, violating a prior withdrawal agreement. Armenia requests Russian military assistance. Azerbaijan denies any wrongdoing, stating its forces only defend their side of the frontier.
21 May – Azerbaijan announces discussions with BP to develop solar energy production in Karabakh, aiming to expand renewable energy investment in the region.

4 June – A Kamaz passenger bus carrying journalists and officials hits an anti-tank mine near Susuzluq village, Kalbajar District, killing three people and injuring four others.

30 November – The Azerbaijani State Border Service Mil Mi-17 crashes during drills in Garaheybat; 14 killed and 2 injured. An investigation is launched, and the victims are given martyr status.

1 December – A peaceful protest in Baku supporting jailed activist Saleh Rustamli is met with force; over 40 are arrested with reports of torture and injuries.