According to APA, Azerbaijani police began the operation at the Sputnik office in Baku on the morning of June 30. Two individuals identified as employees of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) were reportedly detained.APA added that in February 2025, a decision was made to suspend the operations of Sputnik Azerbaijan.“The goal of this decision was to ensure parity between Azerbaijani state media operating abroad and foreign journalists working within the country. In other words, the number of Sputnik Azerbaijan journalists working in Baku was to be matched with the number of AZERTAC (Azerbaijan State News Agency) journalists in Russia. However, the Sputnik Azerbaijan editorial office failed to comply with this decision. Over the past months, the editorial staff continued operating as usual,” the report stated.Russia's reactionThe Russian Foreign Ministry reacted to the events, calling them "illegal detention of Russian journalists". The ministry also summoned the Azerbaijani ambassador because of Baku's "unfriendly actions," TASS reports.Tensions between Azerbaijan and Russia escalated after Moscow’s refusal to take responsibility for downing an Azerbaijani plane, prompting Baku’s diplomatic pressure and symbolic support for Ukraine.