Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian have met in Yerevan, where the two signed a number of documents and held a joint press conference.
Iran is one of Armenia’s closest allies, but events in recent months have exposed some areas of tension. In particular, Iran has expressed some concern about the US-managed ‘Trump Route’ that was agreed upon earlier in August, which seeks to connect Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan through Armenian territory.
Iranian officials initially spoke negatively about the plan, announced by Pashinyan, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, and US President Donald Trump in Washington, but the criticism appears to have since softened.
During Tuesday’s press conference, Pashinyan said that any ‘connection routes passing through Armenia will be exclusively under Armenian jurisdiction, Armenia will ensure the security, and not any other country’. Similar statements were made by other Armenian officials following the Washington meeting.
The prospect of US presence on or near the Armenian–Iranian border, even if non-military, has been considered a red line by Tehran.
According to official readouts of the meeting from the state-run media outlet Armenpress, Pezeshkian appeared not to directly comment on the controversies related to the Trump Route.
‘We have always emphasised Armenia’s territorial integrity and we will never accept the violation of that integrity. Fortunately, our relations are developing in all areas and I hope that during these discussions and meetings we will be able to further develop these ties’, Pezeshkian said.
The two also agreed to elevate the status of the Armenian–Iranian relationship to the level of ‘strategic partnership’, although it was not immediately clear what the change entailed.
Pashinyan added that the two countries had agreed to build a new bridge over the River Araks at the border.
Several cooperation agreements were signed by Pashinyan and Pezeshkian, as well as a ‘memorandum on political consultations in 2025–2027’ between Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi.
‘The countries also signed memorandums of cooperation in the fields of tourism, vocational education and training, urban development and construction, pharmaceuticals, culture, and cinema’, Armenpress wrote.
During the press conference, Pashinyan accepted Pezeshkian’s invitation to visit Iran, but did not specify when the visit would take place.
OC Media
