Armenia is an independent state, and Iran believes that Yerevan’s diversification of its foreign policy is its natural right.

Axar.az reports that this was stated by Iran’s Ambassador to Armenia, Mehdi Sobhani, while commenting on Yerevan’s growing ties with the West.

He said that Tehran does not view Armenia’s efforts to develop relations with the West as a step against Iran:

“Armenia is simply trying to diversify its relations in different ways for the benefit of its own country. Armenia is an independent country. We cannot tell it which states it should or should not build relations with. We simply believe that Armenia’s development of foreign ties can also contribute to its relationship with Iran.”

Sobhani noted that he recently attended the opening ceremony of a recycling plant in Armenia, funded by the World Bank and the EU, and implemented by an Iranian company:

“We expect that Armenia will use its good relations with Europe and other countries to strengthen ties with Iran. Yerevan has assured us that the development of foreign relations is not directed against Iran-Armenia ties. We trust our Armenian friends. The Armenian government maintains and protects its relations with Iran with great care, because what is happening aligns with the interests of both nations and peoples. It contributes to trade, the activation of economic relations, and the development of tourism and cultural cooperation between the two countries. All of this benefits both the Iranian and Armenian economies.”