Why Did the Iranian Ambassador Visit Gegharkunik Instead of Syunik? A Political Analysis

It was assumed that the Syunik region is of greater importance to Iran; however, the visit to Gegharkunik by the highest-ranking representative of the Iranian state in Armenia illustrated that there is no insignificant territory for official Tehran in Armenia. This was noted by Iranian studies expert Vardan Voskanian on his Facebook page.

“About a week ago, the visit of Iran's Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador Abbas Badakhshan Zohouri, leading an Iranian delegation, to the front line of the Gegharkunik region received some coverage in Armenian media. However, a significant detail went unnoticed. As often happens, the actions of the Iranian side were disproportionate. It was expected that the Syunik region held greater importance for Iran; nonetheless, by visiting Gegharkunik, the highest-ranking representative of the Iranian state indicated that there is no territory in Armenia which is unimportant to official Tehran,” wrote Voskanian.

“In this respect, it was certainly not a coincidence that the Iranian side's actions resulted in chaos and unrest breaking out in Azerbaijan, which was openly expressed in the propaganda channels of Baku's autocrat. Additionally, another noteworthy fact was that the visit took place in the very section of the front line adjacent to the temporarily occupied Karvachar region,” Voskanian added, including a photograph of the Iranian ambassador and the Iranian delegation observing enemy positions alongside Armenian soldiers.