Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammed Javad Zarif, has declared Iranian readiness to support peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Zarif was speaking in Baku before starting a meeting with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev on 25 May.
After passing on the greetings of President Rouhani, Zarif told Aliyev,
"We congratulate you on your historic role in the liberation of Azerbaijani lands. Now you can play a historic role in bringing peace to the region, and we want to commend you for expressing your desire to achieve peace with Armenia. This is very important, and we as Iran are ready to play any role in achieving this, as well as in the reconstruction and restoration of the liberated territories".
Iran has been following developments in the relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan sometimes with interest and at other times with concern. The big changes in the arrangements on the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan following the 44-day war and Azerbaijan's return to territories it had lost nearly three decades ago has also an impact on Iran, which borders the two countries.
The relations between Iran and Azerbaijan have sometimes been difficult, but appear to have improved considerably in recent years. This was also highlighted by President Aliyev when addressing Zarif this morning:
"We are very pleased with the level of co-operation during President Rouhani's presidency, and this period is coming to an end. Please convey my greetings and gratitude for the partnership and co-operation. We have made really great progress in all areas. I think that at present the relations between our countries are perhaps at the highest level in the history of our co-operation."
Zarif is expected to fly from Baku to Yerevan where he will meet with the Armenian leadership.