Political Scientist on Statements from Tehran

Political scientist Suren Surenyan's statement: “Iran’s spiritual leader Ayatollah Khamenei reiterated Iran's position on Twitter: ‘We are pleased to see the return of Karabakh to Azerbaijan. Of course, if there is a policy to close the Iran-Armenia border, the Islamic Republic will be against it, as this border is a 1000-year connecting route.’ For two days now, official Tehran has been consistently repeating this position.

To consider it completely pro-Armenian, as some of our expert and political circles believe, is not accurate. Official Tehran essentially recognizes the results of the 44-day war, moreover, the belonging of Artsakh to Azerbaijan. On the other hand, Tehran clearly disapproves of the regional agreements between Russia and Turkey, and in this context, the issue of the Armenian-Iranian border is mentioned. I am deeply convinced that Tehran has a more global reason for its discontent, presumably related to its assigned role in the regional cooperation system. The ‘guardians’ are Turkey and Russia, and it is not coincidental that the Iranian political leadership reiterates this stance for the third time in the context of visits by Putin and Erdogan.

I am also convinced that the so-called Zangezur corridor is only an excuse, while Tehran's grievances have a more global subtext.”