Pezeshkian in Armenia to discuss foreign meddling in Caucasus, sign deals
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who has embarked on a two-nation trip to Armenia and Belarus, said on Monday that he will sign several agreements with Armenian officials and will discuss serious concerns regarding the United States’ presence in the region.
Heading a high-level delegation, Pezeshkian arrived in Yerevan on Monday on the first leg of his trip.
During his two-day stay in Armenia, Pezeshkian is scheduled to hold talks with the country’s prime minister and president and sign documents for bilateral cooperation. He will also meet the elites and Iranian expats and attend a meeting with economic actors.
Speaking before departure for the trip, the president said the expansion of relations with the neighboring and allied countries are among Iran’s macro priorities.
“During this visit, important memoranda of understanding and agreements will be signed, opening new horizons for preparing the appropriate economic and social ground in the country, which will be beneficial to the progress and advancement of our dear nation.”
He said Iran has always tried to maintain and improve the highest level of political, economic, cultural and social cooperation with the friendly and neighborly countries, particularly Armenia.
The Iranian president explained that the North-South will be among the key topics of discussions as it can provide new opportunities for the development of bilateral cooperation.
Pezeshkian expressed Iran’s serious concern about the presence of American firms in the region, saying, “Past experience showed that some of these companies have carried out unexpected and undesirable actions under the guise of commercial activities.”
“For this reason, we will have serious discussions regarding the concerns and challenges related to this issue.”
On August 8, Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a US-brokered peace agreement in Washington, under which a transport corridor linking Azerbaijan to its landlocked exclave Nakhchivan is to be established.
Under the deal, Armenia granted exclusive rights to the United States to develop a corridor in its southern province of Syunik, which borders Iran, to connect Azerbaijan to Nakhchivan.
Iran has long opposed the idea, saying it would change the geopolitical order of the Southern Caucasus and would restrict Iran’s ability to use transport networks in the region.
Pointing to the objectives of his visit to Belarus, Pezeshkian said the two countries have in recent years managed to improve relations in the social, economic, cultural, and scientific fields.
It is expected that Tehran and Minsk would also accelerate cooperation in areas such as transfer of technology, agriculture, industry and social issues, the Iranian president said.
“It is noteworthy that Belarus has consistently taken principled and firm positions in international forums in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran, including by condemning the Israeli attacks on our country and the acts of aggression in Gaza.”
The president said Iran enjoys high capacities for cooperation with countries in alignment with the Islamic Republic on many strategic issues.