Any economic project in Azerbaijan will from now on require Armenia’s consent - Vardan Voskanyan

Strange enough, launching of any economic project in Azerbaijan will from now on require Armenia’s consent.

“Because we can have the economic programs scrapped in case war breaks out,” expert in Iranian studies Vardan Voskanyan told Tert.am.

According to him, the four-day war has improved Armenia’s situation as it clearly showed Azerbaijan is an unstable and unpredictable state, and implementing any economic projects there poses a serious threat.

Asked if the recent hostilities challenge an unprecedented project of gas piping from Iran to Europe through Armenia and Georgia, with optimistic expectations held before April 1 – and some claim Russia is not at all interested in torpedoing the project – Mr Voskanyan said that the Iranian minister of energy paid a visit to Armenia after the four-day war, and a Russian-Georgian-Armenian-Iranian quadripartite program of energy flow project was launched here.

Russian FM Sergey Lavrov is expected to pay an official visit to Armenia this week. In this context, regional and global actors’ different positions on deployment of peacekeepers are on the agenda.

Moreover, Iranian FM Mohammad Javad Zarif is expected to participate in the Seventh Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations in Baku, Azerbaijan, on April 25-27.

In this context, Iran has not changed its positions.

“Iran has always objected to the emergence of, so to say, a foreign force in the region – in the form of peacemakers or in any other form. Iran believes that the status quo in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone is in its interests though they are not officially stating it. However, it is clearly seen in Iran’s policy, and, as before, Iran is now objecting to the deployment of any peacekeepers,” Mr Voskanyan said.

As to whether Iran has means at its disposal to prevent such developments, the expert said:

“Iran is the only state bordering on three states – Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan. And this factor is an important means at Iran’s disposal to raise its objections.”

Summing up, Mr Voskanyan noted that, however excellent Armenia-Iran relations are, much can always be done.

“And we have to consolidate our positions in this area in Iran. The first is to encourage contacts between intellectuals and students of Nagorno-Karabakh and Iran in Atropatene. The second is work with the Iranian clergy.

“Election of certain pro-Armenian figures because the Iranian clergy not only perform the religious functions, but also influence political decision,” the expert said.

The third is Iran’s political circles.