TEHRAN, Iran (RFE/RL) — President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiterated Iran’s strong interest in expanding its “historic, deep and friendly” relations with Armenia as he met with Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian here over the weekend.
Ahmadinejad reportedly called for a faster implementation of more Armenian-Iranian energy projects. Official Iranian sources quoted him as saying they will bolster peace and stability in the region.
“We can expand the existing relations by up to three times,” Ahmadinejad told Nalbandian on Saturday, according to the Mehr news agency.
Another Iranian news agency, IRNA, quoted him as repeating his earlier remark that Tehran is placing “no limitations” on the development of bilateral ties “in all areas.”
A statement by the Armenian Foreign Ministry said the two men agreed on the need for a “further development of the mutually beneficial relations.”
“The course of the implementation of joint economic projects was discussed during the meeting,” added the statement. The projects include the construction of two hydroelectric plants on the Arax river marking the Armenian-Iranian border and a pipeline that will ship Iranian fuel to Armenia. The two governments also plan to build a third high-voltage transmission line connecting their power grids. The Armenian government has repeatedly said that work on these facilities will start this year. However, there have been no official announcements to that effect yet.
