Pashinyan on Relations with Neighboring Countries

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addressed the relationships Armenia holds with its neighboring countries, particularly with Iran.

Pashinyan noted that Armenia has four neighbors, two of which it maintains very good relations with. He stated, “Iran is a friendly country for us, which also has good relations with Azerbaijan, and we have no intention of having poor relations with those countries that maintain good relations with Azerbaijan. But at this time, we have very close ties with Iran, and incidentally, we hope that through cooperation with Iran, we will be able to expand our bilateral relations with Qatar as well.”

He continued, “We are currently working to develop communications between Iran and Armenia, and we are in the phase of constructing a strategic highway called North-South, which connects our border with Georgia to the border with Iran. We hope that as a result of this program, our economic relations with Iran will grow.” Pashinyan also mentioned that Armenia is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union and has a free trade agreement with Iran, which is very important in the context of their bilateral relations.