Iranist: The Armenian-Iranian agenda should go into the practical  plane without taking into account pressure on Armenia

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.