Indians sour on Turkey, Azerbaijan after conflict

Travel bookings drop by 60% amid calls for nations' boycott

- Shashank Mattoo

NEW DELHI: India's relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey are facing significant strain in the aftermath of New Delhi's military confrontation with Pakistan. Both nations have long been perceived as close diplomatic partners of Islamabad, a fact that has complicated and strained ties with India. Over the last week, calls to boycott travel to Azerbaijan and Turkey have grown. On Wednesday, JNU announced it would end an academic agreement with Turkey's Inonu University citing national security concerns.

The immediate trigger for these tensions was the diplomatic stance taken by Baku and Ankara after India launched military strikes on terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan. Both countries expressed solidarity and support with Islamabad.