Araghchi: Iran has repeatedly warned about negative consequences of foreign presence in Caucasus region

Pars Today – On Sunday, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran said: Any foreign presence in the Caucasus region, in any form, could have negative consequences for peace and stability in the area. This issue has been consistently raised with both Azerbaijani and Armenian parties, and Iran will continue to emphasize it.

According to Pars Today, Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, speaking on the sidelines of a government meeting, responded to a question regarding the Azerbaijan-Armenia agreement by noting that Iran has had ongoing and repeated dialogue with both Yerevan and Baku. He said: “Iran’s position regarding Zangezur and the related discussions is completely clear; we welcome any peace between Yerevan and Baku and have previously expressed our readiness to cooperate and assist the peace process between the two sides.”

The Iranian Foreign Minister added that any foreign presence in the Caucasus region could have negative repercussions for regional peace and stability. “Our position regarding this region is transparent: Iran seeks to preserve the full sovereignty of all regional countries over their lands and defends the territorial integrity and internationally recognized borders of all Caucasus countries, and it does not accept any changes to these.”

Araghchi recalled that the joint statement by Armenia and Azerbaijan includes three key principles: respect for the sovereignty of regional countries, respect for their territorial integrity, and opposition to any border changes. These points align exactly with the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

He emphasized that the corridor issue has been completely set aside, and the matter now concerns a transit road that will be under Armenian sovereignty and jurisdiction, and will be built on Armenian soil. The project will be executed by a company, reportedly an Armenian-American firm registered in Armenia and operating under Armenian law.

In conclusion, the Iranian Foreign Minister said: Tehran has warned against any foreign presence in the region, stressing that such actions could threaten peace and stability. Iran is concerned about the potential involvement of an American company in this project. This concern has been communicated to the relevant parties, and developments are being closely monitored.

MG