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Iranian envoy says Azeri oil project "political" not commercial -Arm

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  • Iranian envoy says Azeri oil project "political" not commercial -Arm

    Iranian envoy says Azeri oil project "political" not commercial - Armenian paper

    Iravunk, Yerevan
    29 Oct 04

    Not only the interests of the world's super powers clash in the South
    Caucasus but also those of the regional countries. In this sense
    relations between Iran and Armenia stand out as they have always
    been friendly and warm. The Iranian ambassador to Armenia, Ali Reza
    Haqiqian, answers some of the questions regarding Armenian-Iranian
    relations.

    [Iravunk correspondent] Mr Ambassador, what do you think of the
    current level of Armenian-Iranian relations?

    [Ali Reza Haqiqian] Today Iran-Armenian relations are at a good level.

    [Passage omitted: the ambassador says that Kocharyan's visit to Iran
    In 2001 and Khatami's visit to Armenia this year played an important
    role in deepening relations and strengthening a long-lasting peace
    in the Caucasus and calls for multilateral links]

    [Correspondent] Although Nagornyy Karabakh is an unrecognized country,
    it is Iran's neighbour, and the latter has to have a certain position
    on the Karabakh settlement. Which principles should be taken into
    account in settling the Karabakh issue?

    [Haqiqian] Iran's position on regional developments is precise
    and is based on the principles of cooperation, balance and mutual
    understanding. We stress the need for a peaceful settlement of
    the Karabakh issue and the continuation of Armenian-Azerbaijani
    negotiations. And Iran has always expressed its readiness to help
    settle the problem.

    [Correspondent] After 15 years of neutrality Iran finally said that
    it recognizes Azerbaijan's territorial integrity. It is quite normal
    for a country to sympathize with its neighbour's problems, but why
    does your country put an emphasis on this? Does this statement mean
    a radical change in Iran's position?

    [Haqiqian] Iran has not changed its principled position on the regional
    developments and neighbouring countries.

    [Correspondent] It is known that the USA and Azerbaijan have very
    close relations. In this case why is Iran siding with these two?

    [Haqiqian] Iran builds its bilateral relations with all the countries
    and especially with its neighbours on the basis of the principle of
    mutual respect and non-interference in the internal affairs. It is
    noteworthy that relations with our neighbours develop in different
    spheres on the basis of the will, desire, ability and potential of
    the parties involved.

    [Correspondent] They say that the Moscow-Baku-Tehran railway will
    become an alternative to the Baku-Tbilisi Ceyhan [oil pipeline, BTC,
    as received]. What is your view?

    [Haqiqian] Iran has an important role and place in the regional
    communication and transit system. For this reason it is natural for
    the regional countries to be interested in developing cooperation with
    Iran. Moreover the situation in the region and regional developments
    have once again shown the significance of the Iranian direction. We
    hope that this will also create conditions for the development of
    regional cooperation. As for the BTC project, many specialists think
    it is not a commercial but a political project.

    [Correspondent] What can you say about a gas pipeline to link Iran
    and Armenia? Will it become a transit one?

    [Haqiqian] The Iranian-Armenian gas pipeline is one of the most
    important elements of our relations. The construction of the gas
    pipeline will have a positive economic impact on the region. As for
    the transit problem, I must say that on the whole the development of
    cooperation among different countries, in particular, in the energy
    sphere will contribute to greater mutual understanding. At the
    same time in case of the gas transit we must look at the economic,
    technical and other sides of the issue.
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