Alen Simonyan Meets with Iranian Foreign Minister: Discussion Highlights

The President of the National Assembly of Armenia, Alen Simonyan, received a delegation led by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on October 22. Welcoming the guests, Simonyan expressed warm memories of their productive meeting in Tehran last June. He emphasized the importance of neighboring relations with friendly Iran, noting that efforts aimed at developing these ties are yielding results.

“The opening of your main consulate in Kapan, the center of the Syunik region, is a fact. I congratulate everyone on this important event,” Simonyan stated, adding that Armenia aims to open its consulate in Tabriz in the near future.

The Iranian Foreign Minister thanked Simonyan for the congratulations, highlighting that the establishment of the main consulate in Kapan carries an important message, signaling Iran's opposition to obstacles along the border with friendly Armenia and its support for regional development. He also noted that they are interested in the opening of Armenia's main consulate in Tabriz.

Both sides acknowledged that the Iranian main consulate will contribute to the more effective realization of existing potential in trade, transport, energy, and several other sectors in the Syunik region.

The discussions also addressed security issues and long-term peace in the region. A key topic was the Armenian-Iranian strategic dialogue across all areas, as well as the prospect of increasing bilateral trade to $1 billion. The Iranian Foreign Minister mentioned that reaching $1 billion is feasible in the first phase, while in the second, more prospective phase, achieving $3 billion in trade circulation is realistic.

At the end of the meeting, Alen Simonyan conveyed greetings to the President of Iran's Majlis, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, noting that he looks forward to welcoming his counterpart in Armenia.