Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev expressed concern on Friday that potential sanctions on neighbouring Iran could have a negative impact on regional stability.
"We are very concerned that any potential step to destabilise the situation can have a big impact on regional development in general," Aliyev told reporters in Baku.
"As far as sanctions against Iran, we will not support it. We think they are counterproductive. They will not lead to resolution of this issue -- they will only make the situation worse," Aliyev said.
Azerbaijan is a key regional ally for the United States and has also built close diplomatic and trade relations with Iran, with which it shares ethnic and cultural links.
"We have good relations with the United States... At the same time, we have very good relations with Iran. In our policy, these two elements do not contradict," Aliyev said.