On July 8, Iranian Ambassador Mehdi Sobhani rejected certain territorial provisions in the ECO Khankendi Communiqué as inconsistent with Iran’s official stance, while Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Aykhan Hajizada on July 9 dismissed Sobhani’s objections as diplomatically unfounded and accused him of political manipulation.

Mehdi Sobhani, Iran's Ambassador to Armenia, stated that certain provisions of the communiqué adopted at the recent Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) summit did not reflect Iran’s official position, particularly sections containing what he called fabricated concepts violating Armenia’s territorial integrity. Sobhani emphasized that the statement issued at the summit represented the views of the chair, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, and did not necessarily convey the positions of all participating states.

He remarked, "Some of the provisions in this ECO communiqué, particularly those involving fabricated territorial claims against the Republic of Armenia, are inconsistent with the principled stance of the Islamic Republic of Iran". He further stressed that Iran supported a peace process based on terms mutually accepted by both sides and added that official reservations about the communiqué had been conveyed to the ECO in a formal letter.

Aykhan Hajizada, Spokesperson for the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, rejected Sobhani’s remarks as unacceptable. Hajizada underlined that, consistent with established practice, the Khankendi Communiqué had been prepared as a chairman’s summary and published without requiring formal approval from individual member states. "In this context, the Iranian Ambassador’s allegations... do not reflect the actual situation," he said, noting that diplomatic reservations can only be made on decisions adopted through negotiation.

Hajizada accused the Iranian Ambassador of "political manipulation and hypocrisy" and pointed out that all ECO members, including Iran, had unanimously supported the right of return for the Western Azerbaijan Community through an OIC resolution, which was referenced in the Khankendi Communiqué.