Case comes amid easing tensions between Paris and Baku.

A court in Azerbaijan on Monday sentenced a French national to 10 years in prison on espionage charges, in a case launched during a period of strained relations between Paris and Baku.

Martin Ryan was arrested in December 2023 and went on trial in January last year, when ties between Azerbaijan and France had deteriorated sharply over Paris’s support for Armenia, Baku’s longtime rival.

Prosecutors had sought an 11 year sentence, accusing Ryan of cooperating with employees of France’s security services allegedly operating from the French embassy in Baku.

They said he gathered information on Azerbaijan’s relations with Turkey, Iran and Pakistan, as well as companies linked to Russia and China.

Ryan was tried alongside Azerbaijani citizen Azad Mamedli, who was convicted of high treason and sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Authorities said Ryan recruited Mamedli and arranged meetings with French intelligence agents, who allegedly tasked him with recruiting Azerbaijanis and Russians at a Moscow university where he studied.

In his final statement, Ryan denied spying and said he had acted unknowingly.

Ryan’s lawyer said his client also holds British nationality.

France has rejected the accusations and called for his immediate release, saying he has no links to French intelligence and was caught in the crossfire of diplomatic tensions.

Relations between the two countries have improved in recent months after disputes linked to the long running conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held a phone call to discuss restoring bilateral ties and expanding cooperation, according to Aliyev’s office.