Karabakh still a headache for Iran

Iran continues to closely follow the peacekeeping and humanitarian mission in Nagorno Karabakh. Foreign Minister Javad Zarif will be visiting Baku and Moscow this week to discuss the situation in Karabakh. Iranian border security will be a key issue according to officials. 

Last Wednesday, Hesamodin Ashena, the senior advisor to Iran's President held separate meetings with ambassadors of Azerbaijan and Armenia in Tehran. 

Iran officially welcomes the end of hostilities. The agreement is largely in line with the Iranian plan proposed last month. The Spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia would address the issue of foreign fighters in the region which was one of Iran’s main concerns. Another positive aspect for Iran, highlighted by Parsine News, is that several cities near the border with Iran need to be rebuilt. This could encourage trade with Iran in the short term. 

However, not everyone in Iran is optimistic about the Russian deal. One of the most significant changes in the new Nagorno Karabakh agreement is the Azerbaijani control of the border with Iran. Several analysts have said that the situation could pose future tensions as nearly the entire border region south of the Aras river is inhabited by ethnic Azerbaijanis. There are legitimate fears that a separatist movement could threaten future relations between Azerbaijan and Iran. Besides ethnicity, the ninth clause of the agreement is a concern for Iranian scholars and political analysts. The clause stipulates the following: 

The Republic of Armenia guarantees the safety of transport links between the western regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic in order to organize the unimpeded movement of citizens, vehicles and goods in both directions.

Ehsan Movahedian, a university lecturer and international relations researcher discussed the potential “economic consequences” of the agreement with Fars News Agency. Movahedian says Turkey and Azerbaijan will no longer need Iran to access the Nakhichevan region thus reducing its dependency and possibly causing financial losses to Iran. Until now, land connections between Azerbaijan and its Nakhichevan exclave passed through Iranian territory. On the other hand, Russian Middle East expert Mayis Gurbanov says that due to the Nakhchivan corridor, Iran will be able to compete more with the European Union because the cost of supplying goods will be reduced by using this plan.

Image
The proposed Nakhchivan corridor (Eurasianet)
The proposed Nakhchivan corridor (Eurasianet). 

Abbas Araghchi, Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran, dismissed the concerns. He also dismissed online rumors that a geographical strip will be created between Iran and Armenia. 

There will be no change in Iran's transit routes to Armenia or Azerbaijan.

Araghchi described the proposed Nakhichevan corridor as a transit route and not a substitute for roads that pass across Iran. 
 

Source: commonspace.eu with agencies. 
Photo: Iranian trucks en route. 

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell underlined that the European Union will make every effort to support the peace process and to remain a committed partner to the Afghan people. "Of course, we will have to take into account the evolving situation, but disengagement is not an option.  We are clear on that: there is no alternative to a negotiated political settlement, through inclusive peace talks.
Editor's choice
News
Dunya Mijatovic: "Entrenched harmful stereotypes and prejudice against LGBTI people still prevail in segments of Georgian society, including some politicians"

Dunya Mijatovic: "Entrenched harmful stereotypes and prejudice against LGBTI people still prevail in segments of Georgian society, including some politicians"

On March 27, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, issued a statement calling on the Georgian government to “fully respect” its human rights obligations as a Council of Europe member state, “including with regard to the protection of the human rights of LGBTI people,” in response to the ruling party’s initiation of two draft constitutional laws on “family values and the protection of minors.” “I am concerned about the present political discourse in Georgia, as illustrated by the announcement made by the Georgian Dream Party of their initiative to amend the Constitution and to adopt a new constitutional law on ‘Protection of Family Values and Underaged Persons’. It is reflective of entrenched harmful stereotypes and prejudice against LGBTI people which still prevail in segments of Georgian society, including some politicians, and is capable of having a strong, negative impact on the human rights, safety and well-being of LGBTI people and defenders of their rights. It also represents the political manipulation of LGBTI-phobia in the run-up to elections, which I have previously condemned, and which should have no place in a democratic society, based on the rule of law and respect for human rights of everyone.

Popular

Editor's choice
News
Dunya Mijatovic: "Entrenched harmful stereotypes and prejudice against LGBTI people still prevail in segments of Georgian society, including some politicians"

Dunya Mijatovic: "Entrenched harmful stereotypes and prejudice against LGBTI people still prevail in segments of Georgian society, including some politicians"

On March 27, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, issued a statement calling on the Georgian government to “fully respect” its human rights obligations as a Council of Europe member state, “including with regard to the protection of the human rights of LGBTI people,” in response to the ruling party’s initiation of two draft constitutional laws on “family values and the protection of minors.” “I am concerned about the present political discourse in Georgia, as illustrated by the announcement made by the Georgian Dream Party of their initiative to amend the Constitution and to adopt a new constitutional law on ‘Protection of Family Values and Underaged Persons’. It is reflective of entrenched harmful stereotypes and prejudice against LGBTI people which still prevail in segments of Georgian society, including some politicians, and is capable of having a strong, negative impact on the human rights, safety and well-being of LGBTI people and defenders of their rights. It also represents the political manipulation of LGBTI-phobia in the run-up to elections, which I have previously condemned, and which should have no place in a democratic society, based on the rule of law and respect for human rights of everyone.