RT by @mikenov: What Ilham Aliyev will never publicly admit is that his family came to power through the will of Iossif Stalin. Stalin, who was Georgian, was openly Iranophobic. Not only did he consider (before abandoning the idea) seizing southern Azerbaijan from Iran, but he also expelled the Persian-speaking Shiites from Dagestan (who had once been the majority) to replace them with Sunnis, and even created a new Sunni capital for Dagestan, Makhachkala, in place of Shiite Derbent. Similarly, in Arran (northern Azerbaijan), where Persian-speaking Azerbaijanis remained numerous and held power, he expelled them to Iran (southern Azerbaijan) and installed more Turkic-speaking people there, in

What Ilham Aliyev will never publicly admit is that his family came to power through the will of Iossif Stalin.

Stalin, who was Georgian, was openly Iranophobic. Not only did he consider (before abandoning the idea) seizing southern Azerbaijan from Iran, but he also expelled the Persian-speaking Shiites from Dagestan (who had once been the majority) to replace them with Sunnis, and even created a new Sunni capital for Dagestan, Makhachkala, in place of Shiite Derbent.
Similarly, in Arran (northern Azerbaijan), where Persian-speaking Azerbaijanis remained numerous and held power, he expelled them to Iran (southern Azerbaijan) and installed more Turkic-speaking people there, including the Aliyev family. The Aliyevs became a dynasty of tyrants by Stalin’s will and no other. Turkey played no role.

— @Orthodoxe Oct 15, 2026