Caucasus region must not become outsiders' competition field

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia had a telephone conversation with President Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi of Iran on Wednesday night.

During this telephone conversation, president Raeisi congratulated the arrival of the birthday of Jesus Christ and the beginning of the new year and expressed his satisfaction with the process of expanding relations and implementing bilateral agreements.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran supports any type of action and platform for opening communication routes and infrastructures in the region, respecting the principle of respect for the national sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, and considers it an effective step in the direction of consolidating peace and securing the interests of its neighbors," Raeisi said in reaction to the plan of the Armenian government to develop road and rail communication routes between the two countries and the countries of the region.

"The foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran towards the Caucasus is stable," Raeisi also said, adding that the Caucasus region must not become a field of competition of extra-regional countries and its issues should be resolved by the countries of the region without the interference of outsiders.

The president described the successful holding of the 3+3 meeting in Tehran as a constructive step to strengthen regional relations and cooperation and normalize the relations of the countries of the region with each other.

Developing relations with neighbors and strengthening relations to ensure mutual interests and the interests of regional countries is the fundamental policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, he said.

Armenian Prime minister, for his part, considered the continuation and increase of relations between the high-ranking officials of Iran and Armenia as proof of the two countries' will to comprehensively expand bilateral relations.

RHM/5972427