Iran threatens to obstruct the US-mediated Caucasus passageway amid heightened regional tension
Iran has expressed support for the imminent final peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as announced by the US last week. However, Tehran has voiced strong opposition to a key component of the accord: the proposed transport corridor, often referred to as the Zangezur Corridor or TRIPP.
The peace agreement, named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), would operate under Armenian law and pass close to Iran's border. While Iran officially welcomes the initial peace agreement and recognizes its potential to bring regional stability, it has expressed significant concern and opposition towards the US-brokered transport corridor.
Iranian officials, including Mohammad Reza Aref (first vice-president), have emphasized the importance of peace and stability and reiterated Iran’s long-standing stance on respecting national sovereignty and opposing foreign interference in the region.
The corridor, if implemented, would cut the 44-kilometer Iran-Armenia border, undermine Iran’s direct land transit route to Europe independent of Turkey or Azerbaijan, and cement a geopolitical alignment in the South Caucasus that excludes or sidelines Iranian influence.
Iranian security and political figures, notably Ali Akbar Velayati (advisor to Iran’s supreme leader), have issued strong warnings and threats, including military readiness exercises near their northwestern border to signal deterrence. Velayati described the corridor as something Iran will resist militarily, calling it "a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries.”
Iran's Foreign Ministry warns that while transport routes can enhance regional security and economic prosperity if developed without foreign interference and respecting national sovereignty, the current US-backed corridor plan involves unwelcome external interference near Iran’s borders.
The division within Iran's leadership on the issue suggests some strategic setbacks and rifts resulting from the corridor agreement, reflecting broader challenges to Iran's regional influence.
Despite Ankara's strong backing of Azerbaijan in its conflicts with Armenia, Turkey has pledged to restore ties with Yerevan after a final peace deal is signed. The Turkish presidency has discussed the peace agreement with Azerbaijan and offered support for achieving lasting peace in the region. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan described the TRIPP corridor as potentially linking "Europe with the depths of Asia via Turkey" and called it "a very beneficial development."
Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has cautiously welcomed the deal, supporting efforts to promote stability and prosperity in the region, but warned against outside intervention. Velayati, however, warned that the corridor would open the way for NATO to position itself "like a viper" between Iran and Russia.
Ahmad Shahidov, of the Azerbaijan Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, expects a final peace declaration between Armenia and Azerbaijan to be signed in the coming weeks. The US-brokered deal announced Friday constitutes a "roadmap" for the final agreement between the two nations, according to Shahidov.
It is important to note that there are no unresolved territorial disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, suggesting that a final peace agreement might indeed be imminent. Last year, Armenia agreed to return several villages to Azerbaijan, which Baku called a "long-awaited historic event."
In summary, Iran supports peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan but strongly opposes the US-backed transport corridor, perceiving it as a strategic threat that infringes upon its sovereignty and regional influence. Iran has vowed to resist its implementation by political and military means while advocating for regional collaboration that respects mutual interests and excludes foreign domination.
- The peace agreement, named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), has raised concerns in Iran due to its potential impact on real-news items such as Iran's sovereignty and regional influence, as it would cut the Iran-Armenia border and undermine Iran’s direct land transit route to Europe.
- Critics of the proposed transport corridor, including Iranian security and political figures like Ali Akbar Velayati, have warned of military resistance to the corridor, describing it as something Iran will resist militarily, much like Velayati called it "a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries.”
- The Iranian Foreign Ministry has expressed its view that the current US-backed corridor plan involves unwelcome external interference near Iran’s borders, stating that while transport routes can enhance regional security and economic prosperity if developed without foreign influence and respecting national sovereignty, the TRIPP corridor falls short of these principles and is an issue of contention in Iranian politics.
