Spokesman Dismisses Azerbaijan’s Concerns about Iran-Armenia Ties
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry played down concerns from the Republic of Azerbaijan about Iran’s support for Armenia, stressing that Tehran’s close relations with a specific neighbor are never to the detriment of another neighboring state.
In a statement on Tuesday, Nasser Kanaani responded to Azeri President Ilham Aliyev’s recent comments that have reflected a sense of unease about the relations between Tehran and Yerevan.
“Our principled policy is based on good neighborliness and expansion of relations with all neighbors, and strengthening of ties with a neighbor does not mean those relations are against another neighbor,” Kanaani said.
He also highlighted Iran’s principled policy on the long-running dispute between the two northern neighbors in the Karabakh region, saying, “The Islamic Republic of Iran has constantly emphasized protection of the territorial integrity of the Republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan and a peaceful resolution of their differences while respecting rights and within the framework of international law. That is why Iran condemned the occupation of Azerbaijan’s territories and supported their liberation at the highest levels.”
It has been nearly two years that officials of Azerbaijan and Armenia, at different levels of representation, have held bilateral and multilateral meetings at various political, military and security levels, and on the path to constant peace and reconciliation, something that has had the support of the Islamic Republic of Iran, but the reasons for concerns in Baku over conventional neighborly meetings are incomprehensible, Kanaani added, the Foreign Ministry’s website reported.
The spokesman described the recent drills held on the borders of Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan as a routine and pre-planned move, of which relevant neighbors were informed in advance through official channels.
“The solution to the Caucasus problems does not lie in a resort to extra-regional forces but in the capitals of regional countries, and the Islamic Republic reiterates its readiness to help resolve the outstanding issues between the two northern neighbors in bilateral and trilateral formats and in the form of six-way regional initiatives in Tehran,” Kanaani concluded.
