Resolution to Caucasus issue runs through regional countries

"The path of resolution of the Caucasus' problems runs through the regional countries' capitals, not through seeking recourse to extra-regional forces," spokesman Nasser Kan'ani said on Tuesday.

The remarks were made against the backdrop of continued tension between Armenia and its estranged neighbor Azerbaijan over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but has been populated by ethnic Armenians.

The Islamic Republic has invariably placed emphasis on the need for the neighbors to respect each other's territorial integrity, the official said.

Iran has, therefore, "condemned occupation of the Azerbaijani territories," and supported "peaceful resolution" of the dispute between the Caucasus' countries in line with the international law, Kan'ani said.

The Islamic Republic, he added, once again announces its readiness to help resolve the outstanding issues between Azerbaijan and Armenia within various formats, including bilateral, trilateral, and also the 3+3 format cooperation mechanism, which features the three South Caucasus' countries of Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan plus Russia, Turkey, and Iran.

The Iranian official also pointed to earlier remarks made by the Azeri President Ilham Aliyev, through which he had expressed dissatisfaction with recent back-to-back meetings between Iranian and Armenian officials, accusing Tehran of showing excessive support for Yerevan.

"Our principled policy is based on good-neighborliness and expansion of relations with all neighbors," Kan'ani said, noting that Iran never reinforces its ties with one neighbor to the detriment of another.