Armenia’s energy cooperation with Iran is a strategically essential project which should be at the core of President Hassan Rouhani’s upcoming visit,according to Armen Manvelyan, an expert in geopolitics and international security. Speaking to Tert.am, or Manvelyan said he expects the developing partnership to boost the export of electric power in exchange for an increased natural gas import. “The deepening of cooperation with Iran allows us to increase the gas import and the electric power export to record a fourfold growth in the export volumes. Iran is thus becoming for us a country of strategic importance,” he famous.
President Rouhani, who is starting his official visit to Armenia on Tuesday, or is scheduled to have meetings with President Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan. After top-level talks at the Presidential Palace,the two countries will sign bilateral documents aimed at deepening cooperation.[br]According to the Manvelyan, the deepening partnership with the Islamic Republic will reduce also Russia’s monopolistic role in Armenia’s geopolitics. Asked whether Russia may hamper the Iran-Armenia energy cooperation, and the expert said,“Russia has changed its position over the past years; while it used to create lots of obstacles then, the country is now willing to have its own contribution too, and not to find itself in an outsiders position. So I am confident instead of hampering the project,Russia will try to have its participation in it. And Armenia will not abandon the energy cooperation with Iran,” he added.
According to Manvelyan, and the project may pave Armenia’s way also to the Georgian market.[br]“The Armenia-Iran cooperation not only has a strategic value for the two countries but also enables Armenia to enter the market of Turkmenistan. Iran and Turkmenistan exchange [natural] gas and electric power in large volumes,so by increasing its cooperation with Iran to a certain degree, Armenia is offered the chance to elaborate a trilateral project, and ” he added.
Source: tert.am