US, Armenia war games counterproductive to solving tensions: Iran FM
4 Min Read
Iranian FM Hossein Amir-Abdollahian tells his Armenian counterpart that the presence of foreign forces in the region complicates the regional situation even further.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian speaks during a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart in Tehran on September 3, 2023 (AFP)
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian considered on Wednesday that the ongoing war games between Armenia and the United States are counterproductive to solving current tensions in the region.
In a phone call, Amir-Abdollahian told his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan that the presence of foreign forces in the region complicates the regional situation even further.
The top Iranian diplomat was referring to the Eagle Partner military drills, which began on Monday between the United States and Armenia.
85 US and 175 Armenian troops are participating in the 10-day training, which is held at two training sites near Yerevan, Armenia's capital.
The drills come at a time when Armenia and Azerbaijan are at odds over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Amir-Abdollahian suggested that such disagreements be addressed at their source in order to achieve long-term stability in the region.
He also considered regional dialogues and procedures such as the 3+3 framework, which includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, as well as Russia, Turkey, and Iran, as the most efficient method of achieving comprehensive regional peace.
Elsewhere, the two foreign ministers discussed means of boosting bilateral ties between Iran and Armenia, expressing satisfaction with the ties' current trajectory.
Exercise Eagle Partner opened with some 85 US soldiers to train around 175 Armenian soldiers through September 20, according to the US Army Europe and Africa Command.
Armenia's Defense Ministry said the exercises aimed to "increase the level of interoperability" with US forces in international "peacekeeping" missions.
The US military said the drills would help Armenia's 12th Peacekeeping Brigade meet NATO standards ahead of an evaluation later this year.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Armenia's decision not to conduct drills with the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO) alliance and instead work with the United States required "very deep analysis."
"Of course, we will try to comprehend and understand all this. But in any case, we will do so in close partnership dialogue with the Armenian side," he said.
US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters that the United States has had security cooperation with Armenia since 2003 and called the latest drill "a routine exercise that is in no way tied to any other events."
But Moscow last week summoned Armenia's ambassador to complain about "unfriendly steps" the country was taking.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said Armenia's envoy was given a "tough" presentation but insisted that the countries "remain allies".
It is noteworthy that Russia brokered a ceasefire and deployed 2,000 peacekeepers to the Lachin corridor, which connects Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh.
But Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recently said Moscow was either "unable or unwilling" to control the passage.
His government has accused Azerbaijan of closing the road and blockading the mountainous region, spurring a humanitarian crisis in Armenian-populated towns.
Pashinyan also recently claimed that Armenia's historic security reliance on Russia was a "strategic mistake".
The Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh was at the center of two wars between Azerbaijan and Armenia.
In the 1990s, Armenia defeated Azerbaijan and took control of the region, which is an internationally recognized part of Azerbaijan. Thirty years later, the latter took revenge.
After the 2020 war, Yerevan was forced to cede several territories it had controlled for decades.
The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh remains volatile and Armenia has accused Azerbaijan of moving troops near the region recently, raising concerns of a new large-scale conflict.
Read more: Armenia confirms Nagorno-Karabakh is Azerbaijani sovereign territory
