YEREVAN (Azatutyun) — US Deputy Special Envoy for Iran Abram Paley has met with senior Armenian officials in Yerevan during a tour of the three South Caucasus countries, it emerged on April 2.
Armenia was apparently the first stop of the regional tour revealed by Paley in a series of tweets.
“In Yerevan, I had insightful meetings with Armenia’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs [Mnatsakan Safaryan,] National Security Council, Central Bank, and State Revenue Committee on Iran, border security, sanctions enforcement, and Armenia’s economic and foreign policy diversification,” he wrote on the X social media platform.
None of those Armenian agencies issued statements on the meetings with Paley. The policy “diversification” cited by the latter is a euphemism used by the Armenian government in its ongoing efforts to forge closer ties with the West amid the continuing deterioration of Armenia’s relations with Russia. In recent months, Iran has repeatedly expressed unease over the pro-Western tilt in Yerevan’s foreign policy.
Paley posted similar messages on his talks in Georgia and Azerbaijan. As well as holding “fruitful discussions” with Azerbaijani officials, he met with Israel’s ambassador in Baku, George Deek. He said they discussed “our close coordination to address concerns about the Iranian regime’s destabilizing behavior in the region.”
“Wonderful to hear about Israel’s historical and cultural ties to Azerbaijan,” added the US diplomat.
