Diplomat: Iran welcomes normalization of relations between Armenia,  Azerbaijan, and Turkey

ArmInfo.  Iran welcomes the process of normalization of relations between Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, as stated by Iranian Ambassador to Armenia Mehdi Sobhani in an interview with Armenia's Public Television.

"You are neighbors and naturally, neighbors should live next to each  other in peace and security. Regarding unblocking, you are well aware  of our stance on the issue of unblocking regional communications. We  are not against unblocking regional communications, however, it  should be done with full respect for the sovereignty of the parties  and the countries in the region should be able to use them," the  diplomat said.

When asked to assess Iran's foreign policy diversification and the  growing relations between Armenia and the West, Sobhani pointed out  that Tehran sees Armenia's diversification of foreign policy as its  natural right.

"We do not consider this as  a step against Iran. Armenia is working  to diversify its relations in various ways to benefit  its national  interests. Armenia is a sovereign state, and we cannot dictate how it  should shape its foreign policy. However, we do hope that as Armenia  strengthens its relations with other countries, it will also enhance  its relations with Iran," the Iranian ambassador noted.

According to him, Iran expects that the improvement of  Armenian-European relations will be used to develop Armenian-Iranian  relations. "The Armenian government has assured us that the  development of its foreign policy relations is not aimed against Iran  or its weakening, and we trust our Armenian friends. The Armenian  government very subtly preserves and protects relations with Iran,"  the diplomat said. He expressed gratitude to the Armenian side for  its clear stance expressed during the 12-day Iran-Israel war.