Raisi: Caucasus peace is significant, western meddling is problematic

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
2 Nov 2022 11:16

The Iranian President meets with the Armenian Prime Minister and discusses expanding relations as well as ways to maintain peace and stability in the Caucasus area.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi

The Islamic Republic of Iran places a high value on maintaining peace and security in the Caucasus, according to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, and thus any outside meddling in the region's conflict will only exacerbate the problem.

Raisi made the statements following a meeting with visiting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan at a joint press conference in Tehran on Tuesday.

During the joint press conference, Raisi noted that Iran is concerned about the Caucasus as it continues to be a part of Iran's history, civilization, and culture. The Iranian President then added that “security and peace in the Caucasus are very important for Iran.”

Furthermore, Raisi explained that “our negotiations with Mr. Pashinyan came to the conclusion that regional problems should be handled by authorities in the region. Any foreign intervention creates a problem instead of [helping] solve issues.”

Raisi also highlighted Iran's satisfaction with the development of relations between the two nations, and said that “given the diverse and numerous capacities available in Iran and Armenia, it is necessary to exert all our efforts to improve the level of relations and expand bilateral cooperation.”

Significantly, Raisi concluded that “the Islamic Republic is ready to expand cooperation in other economic and commercial areas, including in increasing the export of technical and engineering services.”

For his part, Pashinyan praised the Islamic Republic's positive influence in the region and emphasized that Iran's efforts have always been directed at preserving and enhancing regional peace and security.

Pashinyan expressed appreciation for Raisi's administration's emphasis on strengthening connections with the surrounding nations, adding, “Considering the interests of the two countries and existing capacities, we should try to improve the current level of relations between our two countries.”

In order to connect the Black Sea to the Gulf, Pashinyan also advocated for expanding transit cooperation between Tehran and Yerevan.