The visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on May 25-26, first to Baku and then to Yerevan, was significant for two reasons. The first of them, of course, was the assessment of Baku’s provocations on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and their possible risks. The second reason, in fact, comes out of the first; the visit was not planned in advance. There is a third circumstance, but at least it was not spoken about openly.
The problem refers to the South-North transport corridor, and more specifically, a ‘strange’ circumstance. Any development, related to the ‘corridor’, be it the visit of the Iranian delegation or the Prime Minister of Georgia, almost immediately leads to the organization of border provocations by Azerbaijan. This has already led many experts to conclude that Baku’s actions, particularly in Syunik, in short terms have only and exclusively one purpose - to thwart the plans of the ‘corridor’ to pass through Armenia.
In this context, it is noteworthy that Iran is not only not going to back down from its intentions, but from time to time intensifies its rhetoric, claiming that Armenia’s territorial integrity is the red line beyond which no one is allowed to cross. By the way, in this context, it was very significant that in parallel with Zarif’s visit to Baku, unlike in the previous cases, the situation in Syunik did not escalate, which was probably due to the supposedly tough conversation between Zarif and Ilham Aliyev.
It is clear, however, that the agenda of the talks was dictated by the projects that are of vital importance not only for Iran but also for Armenia. Let us repeat we are talking about the South-North transport corridor, on which the Iranian side is working quite intensively with Yerevan and, at least judging by Zarif’s comments, there are already substantive agreements.
In particular, at the meeting with Acting Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, Zarif first stressed that the Iran-Nakhichevan-Armenia railway will raise the Iran-Armenia economic cooperation to a new level. He stressed the existence of a free economic zone and its opportunities, and emphasized that Iran will soon increase its economic presence in Syunik. All of these issues, of course, are very important separately. However, the combination of these directions suggests that Tehran has steady and extremely serious intentions. And in parallel with the lifting of the vast majority of Western sanctions, it will try to have a reliable border in the north, and which is at least the most important thing for Tehran – a way not dependent on the whims of Ankara or Baku.
The most important is a way that does not depend on the whims of Turkey or Baku.
