Epress.am News from Armenia
In Tehran, they’ve always looked down on Azerbaijan, since according to Iranian imperial custom, Azerbaijan is a part of Iran, said Sergei Arutyunov, chair of the Caucasus Department at the Russian Academy of Sciences, in an interview with Voice of America.
There are 17–20 million ethnic Azerbaijanis in Iran. In the academic’s words, Iran’s governing authorities have always been afraid of Azerbaijan’s support for Iranian-Azerbaijani separatists.
“Often such concerns haven’t been unfounded,” said Arutyunov.
“Azerbaijan’s role today in the Iranian issue is uncertain, if we don’t take into account the Armenian factor, which quite restricts Baku’s possibilities,” he said.
“Let’s not forget, as well, that good relations have developed between Armenia and Iran. And Armenia is the only neighbor with whom Iran’s relations are really quite good. On the other hand, Iran is important for Armenia too. Many things can be acquired through Iran. It was this way that, at one time, the Red Army was supplied. And at that time, I was 10 years old and I remember it all quite well.
“Today, Iran-Armenia relations are strengthening not only on a political level. Numerous Iranian citizens are purchasing property in Armenia. The volume of trade is increasing. Business owners are coming. And it’s interesting that among them, not few in number, are Iranian-Azerbaijanis, who Armenian residents differentiate right away from Baku’s or Nakhichevan’s Azerbaijanis,” added Arutyunov.