ArmInfo. The Armenian-Iranian agenda should, in the end, go on a practical plane without taking into account any pressure on Armenia in this regard. A similar opinion was expressed by ArmInfo, Vardan Voskanyan, Head of the Department of Iranian Studies, Yerevan State University.
"The pressure on Armenia is obvious today. This is stated at the official level, this is evidenced by processes in the banking sector, the Iranian air carrier's exit from the Armenian market, etc. It is clear that all this does not come from our interests, however, at the same time "Any sanctions create new opportunities. Under the existing conditions, Armenia's importance for Iran is growing significantly. And Armenia, in turn, should use the opportunities that are opening up to ensure its own advancement and security," he said.
According to the Iranian, the geopolitical position of Armenia automatically dictates to Yerevan the concept of creating and strengthening Tehran's unique relations. In other words, Armenian diplomacy should make every effort to achieve a level of mutual understanding with US colleagues that excludes any external processes on the path of development of Armenian-Iranian relations.
In this light, the expert considers the forthcoming visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Armenia as an extremely important opportunity for the Armenian-Iranian agenda to hold a series of serious discussions on various areas of its development. Among them, Voskanyan noted the discussion of the participation of Armenia in the formation of the corridor connecting the Persian Gulf with the Black Sea.
According to the Iranian, the construction of the North-South highway, discussion and the beginning of the Iran-Armenia railway project come not only from the economic interests of Armenia, but also can strengthen the country's geopolitical position and place, creating new opportunities to overcome the Turkish-Azerbaijani blockade. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's visit to Armenia was recently announced by the Iranian Ambassador to Armenia, Kazem Sajjadi. According to him, the Iranian president will visit Armenia in the coming weeks at the invitation of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.