Armenia Sends Humanitarian Aid to Iran

Last week, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan addressed the topic of aid to Iran during his weekly press briefing, expressing Armenia’s readiness to provide humanitarian assistance if needed.

“Iran does not need to appeal to us regarding humanitarian aid, because if we see any humanitarian need that we can support, we will take that step ourselves,” Pashinyan said at the time.

Earlier in March, Pashinyan touched upon the war in Iran and the developments in the Middle East during his speech at the EU Parliament, highlighting Armenia’s good relations with almost all sides involved in the conflict.

Pashinyan noted that his government was “pained” by the ongoing war; but added that it was unlikely for  Armenia to have a significant impact on the conflict.

“Against the backdrop of such an international crisis of such magnitude, we are a small, modest state, and we can only pray for the repose of the souls of all the victims and for the wisdom of our partner leaders to find diplomatic solutions as soon as possible.”

Armenia has good relations with Iran, with whom it shares an open border, unlike Turkey and Azerbaijan. There is also a modest population of ethnic Armenians in Iran, numbering some 60,000 to 80,000, according to various estimates.