Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev is 2-for-2 in faceoffs against fellow regional leaders after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan jettisoned an aide, opening the way for Baku and Ankara to move on from a bout of acrimony. 

The Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet reported on October 25 that Erdogan advisor Oktay Saral had been forced to resign. Saral’s criticism of the introduction of new regulations in Azerbaijan that effectively banned religious attire, including hijabs, in state schools sparked a diplomatic row between Baku and Ankara. His departure presumably clears the way for a rapid reconciliation process to begin.

“Our president appointed me to this position, and I resigned at his instruction,” Cumhuriyet quoted Saral as saying. “I bear no ill will towards anyone.”

Saral confirmed in a social media post that his initial comments about the hijab controversy were responsible for his forced departure.

In demanding Saral’s resignation, Erdogan appeared to bow to pressure from Baku to take action to rein in Turkish critics of Azerbaijani policies. Commentaries appearing in Azerbaijan’s tightly state-controlled press had indicated a conciliatory gesture by Erdogan was needed to get bilateral relations back on track.

Earlier in 2026, Aliyev outlasted Russian leader Vladimir Putin in a battle of wills stemming from the accidental shootdown of an Azerbaijani civilian airliner in late 2024. Aliyev exerted pressure on Putin for months until the Kremlin leader finally acknowledged responsibility for the tragedy last fall. Aliyev also forced Putin’s client, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, to offer a ritualised apology earlier in October for the incident.

This article first appeared on Eurasianet here.