Baku: A total of 1,091,865 entries by citizens of 192 countries were recorded in Azerbaijan during the first six months of 2026, Head of the State Migration Service Vusal Huseynov said during a media tour on the topic of "Media Awareness in the Field of Migration," APA reports. He noted that the largest numbers of visitors came from Russia, Trkiye, Georgia, Iran, and Kazakhstan.

According to Azeri-Press News Agency, there has been a sharp decline in visits by citizens of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, India, and other South Asian countries. Huseynov explained that this figure is approximately 10% lower than in the corresponding period of last year. The decline is primarily attributed to a decrease in arrivals from the Gulf countries and the South Asian region, influenced by military and political developments in the area.

Additionally, while there has been an overall decline in visitors, not all regions have experienced the same level of decrease. Growth has been observed in the number of visitors from European countries and from Turkic states such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. This indicates that the most significant drop in tourist arrivals is concentrated in the Gulf countries and the South Asian region.