IranWest AsiaWorld News

Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Iran’s loss

Tehran’s ambassador to Baku says Iran is the only country that has incurred losses from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

“The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has directly affected Iran’s interests and national policy,” Mohammad-Baqer Bahrami said on Sunday.

“The conflict has upset the geo-political balance, especially on the Iran-Azerbaijan border, and has turned into an obstacle in the way of implementing some economic projects,” Fars News Agency quoted the Iranian diplomat as saying.

Bahrami added that Iran cannot remain indifferent towards the security issues of the Caucasus region and therefore intends to mediate in the dispute in order to establish a long-lasting stability and peace in the region.

The Iranian envoy called on regional countries to join the direct talks to achieve a just peace, support the territorial integrity of regional countries and deter foreign interference.

Iran has extended an offer to mediate between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the dispute. Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki earlier suggested a trilateral meeting involving the foreign ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Iran to resolve the dispute.

Both Azerbaijan and Armenia claim the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, which is mainly populated by Armenians but located in Azerbaijan.

Ethnic Armenian forces took control over the Nagorno-Karabakh region during a war with Azerbaijan in the early 1990s.

The conflict left an estimated 30,000 people dead and one million displaced before the two sides agreed to a ceasefire in 1994. However, a peace accord has never been signed.

Back to top button