Diplomat: Iran will express its position if Armenia’s sovereignty comes under threat

ArmInfo.  If a situation arises in which Armenia’s national sovereignty or territorial integrity is under threat, Iran will express a resolute and very serious position. Iran’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Armenia Khalil Shirgholami stated this at a conference on TRIPP on September 17.

The diplomat noted that Iran had resolutely and clearly opposed the idea of the so-called "Zangezur corridor," as this program was aimed at reducing Armenia’s sovereignty.

He once again emphasized that, within the framework of any alternative project, preserving Armenia’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity is a "red line" for Iran?

"If a situation arises in which Armenia’s national sovereignty or territorial integrity is under threat, Iran will express a resolute and very serious position," the ambassador noted.

At the same time, he expressed the conviction that it was precisely the historical sense of geopolitical isolation and constriction that played a more important role than economic considerations and prompted Armenia to join the project linking Nakhijevan with Azerbaijan.

At the same time, the diplomat believes that only time will show how the TRIPP project can help Armenia emerge from isolation and rid itself of the feeling of isolation.

"The second issue that needs to be considered is ensuring Armenia’s national sovereignty and the position that guarantees for this sovereignty must be provided, especially under conditions of external pressure, in particular, in the context of the project promoted and speculatively used by Azerbaijan under the name of the "Zangezur corridor," as well as under conditions of external pressure around Armenia, particularly in light of the demands that some of Armenia’s neighbors have made of it. This project contains elements unacceptable from the standpoint of sovereignty, which created threats to Armenia’s national sovereignty, and it seems that Armenia brought in the United States as a balancing factor and an additional guarantee to ensure security and sovereignty, as well as to ease the pressure from Ankara and Baku," the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran believes.

At the same time, he is confident that only time will show to what extent, within the framework of TRIPP, certain parties are attempting to implement precisely the objectives envisaged by the "Zangezur corridor," and to what extent Armenia will manage to preserve its national sovereignty and guarantee its protection, as well as how committed the current and future U.S. authorities will be to implementing the project and how much they will attempt to support the protection of Armenia’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Shirgholami then pointed to the importance of clear mechanisms for implementing the project that would contribute to strengthening Armenia’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and suggested that even the Armenian authorities do not have a comprehensive understanding of this issue.

Touching upon Tehran’s position on the project, he stated that, given the hostile attitude of the United States toward the Iranian people, the Iranian side had serious concerns about the presence of Americans on the border between Armenia and Iran. However, according to him, if, in implementing TRIPP, the United States proceeds from the need to minimally hinder the development of relations between Armenia and Iran, this will also be a very important achievement. In his words, the best way to dispel Iran’s concerns here is to have an institutional mechanism through which emerging issues could be discussed and managed.

"We hope that the Armenian Government will adhere to such an approach on this important issue that Armenia’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity will not suffer, that the country will be able to consistently advance its economic interests, and that relations between Armenia and its neighbors will not be harmed," Shirgholami emphasized.

At the same time, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran emphasized that just as Armenia is responsibly attempting, within the framework of TRIPP, to help Azerbaijan establish a land connection with Nakhijevan and is investing efforts in building peace, Azerbaijan must responsibly ensure the possibility of a railway connection between Armenia and Iran via Nakhijevan.

He expressed the supposition that establishing a railway connection between Yeraskh and Julfa could create new potential for Armenia, turning it into an important hub linking the Persian Gulf and the Black Sea.