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India.com
11-08-2025
- Politics
- India.com
‘Graveyard For Trump's Mercenaries': Iran Reacts Angrily To Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Deal, Know India's Response
Baku: A historic peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan has raised hopes of ending decades of conflict. The agreement, signed in Washington on Friday, aims to bring lasting peace to the troubled region. However, reactions from regional powers have created uncertainty about the deal's future. Russia responded cautiously, while Iran rejected the U.S.-proposed transit corridor. India also shared its views on the agreement. The accord focuses on resolving the long-standing conflict and includes a transit corridor connecting Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan exclave through Armenian territory. Baku has long sought this corridor. The route has been named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP). Under the deal, the United States gains rights to develop this strategic and resource-rich corridor, signalling a decline in Russia's traditional influence in the region. Iran strongly opposed the corridor. According to Tasnim news agency, Akbar Velayati, advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called the plan a conspiracy that threatens security in the South Caucasus. He described it as an 'impossible idea' and warned it would become a 'graveyard for Trump's mercenaries'. Russia expressed concerns as well. Moscow stated it would analyse the corridor's provisions carefully. The Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, reminded that Moscow still guards Armenia's borders with Iran. Russia's long-standing trilateral agreements with Armenia and Azerbaijan remain in place, with no party withdrawing so far. Moscow was once Armenia's supporter and still maintains a military base there. But its focus on the Ukraine conflict since 2022 limited its involvement in the recent Armenia-Azerbaijan clashes. This has caused tensions in Russia-Armenia relations and pushed Yerevan closer to the West. India welcomed the peace agreement and called it a significant achievement in dialogue and diplomacy. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar spoke with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and congratulated him on the Washington peace summit outcome. He posted on X, 'Good to speak with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan. Congratulated him on the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement in Washington DC. This is an important step for dialogue and diplomacy, which India supports.'
News18
10-08-2025
- Politics
- News18
Iran vows to block US-brokered Caucasus corridor amid regional tensions
Tehran [Iran], August 10 (ANI): Iran has announced it will block a planned transport corridor in the Caucasus under a US-brokered peace accord between Azerbaijan and Armenia, describing the initiative as 'political treachery" aimed at undermining Armenia's territorial integrity, Al Jazeera Akbar Velayati, a top adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said on Saturday that Tehran would obstruct the corridor 'with or without Russia," with which Iran has a strategic alliance alongside President Donald Trump 'thinks the Caucasus is a piece of real estate he can lease for 99 years," Velayati told state-affiliated Tasnim News, referring to the transport corridor included in the peace deal.'This passage will not become a gateway for Trump's mercenaries — it will become their graveyard," he added, warning against what he called a US plot in the region, Al Jazeera terms of the accord, unveiled at a signing ceremony at the White House on Friday, include exclusive US development rights to a route through Armenia linking Azerbaijan to Nakhchivan, an Azerbaijani enclave bordering corridor, named the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), would operate under Armenian law and pass close to Iran's border, raising Tehran's argued the corridor would open the way for NATO to position itself 'like a viper" between Iran and foreign ministry expressed concerns over the 'negative consequences of any foreign intervention" near its borders. While welcoming the peace deal, the ministry emphasized that projects near Iran's borders must respect 'national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and without foreign interference," Al Jazeera Ministry of Foreign Affairs cautiously welcomed the deal, supporting efforts to promote stability and prosperity in the region, including the Washington meeting. However, Moscow warned against outside intervention, stressing that lasting solutions should be developed by regional countries.'The involvement of non-regional players should strengthen the peace agenda, not create new divisions," the ministry said, adding hopes to avoid the 'unfortunate experience" of Western-led conflict resolution in the Middle East, according to Al Turkey expressed hope that the planned transit corridor would boost exports of energy and other resources through the South Caucasus. Ankara has strongly backed Azerbaijan in its conflicts with Armenia but has pledged to restore ties with Yerevan after a final peace deal is Turkish presidency said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the peace agreement with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and offered Ankara's support in achieving lasting peace in the Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, during a visit to Egypt, described the corridor as potentially linking 'Europe with the depths of Asia via Turkey" and called it 'a very beneficial development," Al Jazeera and Azerbaijan have fought several wars since the late 1980s over Nagorno-Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan with a predominantly ethnic Armenian last year agreed to return several villages to Azerbaijan in what Baku called a 'long-awaited historic event."Ahmad Shahidov, of the Azerbaijan Institute for Democracy and Human Rights, told Al Jazeera that he expects a final peace declaration between Armenia and Azerbaijan to be signed in the coming said the US-brokered deal announced Friday constitutes a 'roadmap" for the final agreement, which seems imminent given there are no unresolved territorial disputes between the neighbors, Al Jazeera reported. (ANI)
The Sun
10-08-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Russia cautious on Armenia-Azerbaijan deal as Iran rejects border corridor
MOSCOW: Russia cautiously welcomed a US-brokered draft peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The agreement, signed in Washington on Friday, aims to end decades of conflict between the two former Soviet republics. A key provision includes establishing a transit corridor through Armenia to link Azerbaijan with its exclave of Nakhchivan. The corridor, dubbed the 'Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity,' grants the US development rights in the strategic region. However, Iran, a regional ally of Russia, strongly rejected the proposed corridor along its border. Akbar Velayati, advisor to Iran's supreme leader, warned the corridor would endanger South Caucasus security. He called the plan 'an impossible notion' and vowed it would become 'a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries.' Russia, while acknowledging the deal, said it would further analyze the corridor clause. Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova noted existing trilateral agreements between Russia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. She also highlighted that Russian border guards currently secure Armenia's border with Iran. Moscow maintains a military base in Armenia but has not intervened in recent conflicts due to its Ukraine war. This has strained Russia's historically strong ties with Armenia, pushing Yerevan closer to the West. Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought two wars over border disputes and ethnic enclaves. Russia, once the dominant power broker in the Caucasus, is now preoccupied with its Ukraine offensive. Both Armenia and Azerbaijan praised US mediation efforts in resolving their conflict. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev even endorsed Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. NATO welcomed the deal as a 'significant step forward,' but Russia refrained from calling it a formal agreement. Zakharova referred to it only as 'the meeting of the leaders of the South Caucasus republics in Washington.' Analysts cautioned that the deal leaves many questions unanswered. The International Crisis Group noted unresolved issues, particularly regarding the disputed Karabakh region. Azerbaijan recaptured Karabakh in 2023, displacing over 100,000 ethnic Armenians. A March agreement between the two nations formed the basis of the latest deal. Analyst Joshua Kucera suggested the White House repackaged the March deal to involve Trump. Azerbaijan later added demands, including constitutional changes in Armenia, before signing. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan plans a 2027 referendum on constitutional amendments. Kucera warned unresolved issues could still derail the peace process. He called the corridor a potential breakthrough but noted missing details as major obstacles. Independent analyst Olesya Vardanyan said the deal reflects Russia's declining regional influence. She attributed this shift to Moscow's focus on Ukraine, diverting resources from traditional interests. Despite uncertainties, Vardanyan said the deal offers Armenians hope for a better future. - AFP
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First Post
09-08-2025
- Politics
- First Post
Trump's Armenia–Azerbaijan peace deal sparks geopolitical rift as Russia hesitates, Iran pushes back
Russia cautiously welcomed a US-brokered draft deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan on Saturday, but Moscow's regional ally Iran rejected the idea of a new border corridor backed by President Donald Trump. read more Russia offered a guarded response on Saturday to a US-brokered draft peace deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan, while its regional ally Iran rejected a proposed border corridor championed by US President Donald Trump. The two ex-Soviet neighbours signed the agreement in Washington on Friday, aiming to end decades of conflict, though the specifics and legal force of the deal remain uncertain. A key element of the plan is a transit corridor through Armenia linking Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan, a long-standing demand of Baku. Under the agreement, the United States would gain development rights for the route, dubbed the 'Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity,' in the strategically important, resource-rich region. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Tehran, however, dismissed the proposal outright, vowing not to allow a corridor along the Iranian border. 'With the implementation of this plot, the security of the South Caucasus will be endangered,' said Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as quoted by Tasnim news agency. He called the plan 'an impossible notion' and warned it would become 'a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries.' 'With the implementation of this plot, the security of the South Caucasus will be endangered,' Akbar Velayati, an advisor to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told the Tasnim news agency. The planned corridor was 'an impossible notion and will not happen', while the area would become 'a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries', he added. In a similar tone, Moscow said it would 'further analyze' the corridor clause, noting there were trilateral agreements in place between Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, from which no one had yet withdrawn. 'It should not be ignored that Armenia's border with Iran is guarded by Russian border guards,' said Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. Moscow, previously a key backer of Armenia, still has a military base there. Embroiled in its Ukraine operation, launched in 2022, it did not intervene in the latest conflict. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD This has strained the historically warm ties between Yerevan and Moscow, home to a large and influential Armenian diaspora, triggering Armenia's drift towards the West. Waning influence Christian-majority Armenia and Muslim-majority Azerbaijan went to war twice over their border and the status of ethnic enclaves within each other's territories. Moscow, once the main power broker in the Caucasus, is now bogged down in its more than three-year offensive in Ukraine, diverting political and military resources into the grinding conflict of attrition. Both Armenia and Azerbaijan praised the US efforts in settling the conflict. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev even said he would back President Donald Trump's nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize. The US-led NATO alliance welcomed the deal as a 'significant step forward'. But in Moscow, Zakharova refrained from even calling it a deal, referring to it merely as 'the meeting of the leaders of the South Caucasus republics in Washington' – adding, however, that it still deserved 'a positive assessment'. Repackaging for Trump? Analysts also sounded a note of caution, with the International Crisis Group pointing out that the deal left 'a lot of questions unanswered'. The two countries went to war twice over the disputed Karabakh region, which Azerbaijan recaptured from Armenian forces in a lightning 2023 offensive, sparking the exodus of more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Azerbaijan and Armenia agreed on the text of a comprehensive peace deal in March. Much of the White House agreement was a 'repackaging' of that, which helped both countries get on Trump's good side 'by giving him a role,' the Crisis Group's senior South Caucasus analyst Joshua Kucera said. Azerbaijan later added a host of demands to that March deal, including amendments to Armenia's constitution to drop territorial claims for Karabakh, before signing the document. Pashinyan has announced plans for a constitutional referendum in 2027, but the issue remains deeply divisive among Armenians, with Kucera warning that this could yet derail the process. Kucera called the corridor 'one potentially significant development' from the White House meeting, but added that missing key details could prove 'serious stumbling blocks'. The US-brokered deal was 'definitely a testament to the fact that Russia has been losing its influence' as its Ukraine operation had 'diverted its attention and resources from some other areas of its traditional interest', Olesya Vardanyan, an independent analyst on the South Caucasus, told AFP. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Nevertheless, she added, even if many details were still missing and nothing was guaranteed, the deal still gave Armenians 'a promise of a better life and then maybe even more peace in the region'. With inputs from agencies
Int'l Business Times
09-08-2025
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
Russia Cautious On Armenia-Azerbaijan Deal, Iran Reject Border Corridor
Russia cautiously welcomed a US-brokered draft deal between Armenia and Azerbaijan on Saturday, but Moscow's regional ally Iran rejected the idea of a new border corridor backed by President Donald Trump. The two former Soviet republics signed a peace deal in Washington on Friday to end a decades-long conflict, though the fine print and binding nature of the deal remained unclear. The US-brokered agreement includes establishing a transit corridor through Armenia to connect Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan, a longstanding demand of Baku. The United States would have development rights for the corridor -- dubbed the "Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity" -- in the strategic and resource-rich region. But Russia's ally and the warring parties' southern neighbour Tehran said it would not allow the creation of a such a corridor running along the Iranian border. "With the implementation of this plot, the security of the South Caucasus will be endangered," Akbar Velayati, an advisor to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told the Tasnim news agency. The planned corridor was "an impossible notion and will not happen", while the area would become "a graveyard for Trump's mercenaries", he added. In a similar tone, Moscow said it would "further analyze" the corridor clause, noting there were trilateral agreements in place between Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, from which no one had yet withdrawn. "It should not be ignored that Armenia's border with Iran is guarded by Russian border guards," said Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. Moscow, previously a key backer of Armenia, still has a military base there. Embroiled in its Ukraine operation, launched in 2022, it did not intervene in the latest conflict. This has strained the historically warm ties between Yerevan and Moscow, home to a large and influential Armenian diaspora, triggering Armenia's drift towards the West. Christian-majority Armenia and Muslim-majority Azerbaijan went to war twice over their border and the status of ethnic enclaves within each other's territories. Moscow, once the main power broker in the Caucasus, is now bogged down in its more than three-year offensive in Ukraine, diverting political and military resources into the grinding conflict of attrition. Both Armenia and Azerbaijan praised the US efforts in settling the conflict. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev even said he would back President Donald Trump's nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize. The US-led NATO alliance welcomed the deal as a "significant step forward". But in Moscow, Zakharova refrained from even calling it a deal, referring to it merely as "the meeting of the leaders of the South Caucasus republics in Washington" -- adding, however, that it still deserved "a positive assessment". Analysts also sounded a note of caution, with the International Crisis Group pointing out that the deal left "a lot of questions unanswered". The two countries went to war twice over the disputed Karabakh region, which Azerbaijan recaptured from Armenian forces in a lightning 2023 offensive, sparking the exodus of more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians. Azerbaijan and Armenia agreed on the text of a comprehensive peace deal in March. Much of the White House agreement was a "repackaging" of that, which helped both countries get on Trump's good side "by giving him a role," the Crisis Group's senior South Caucasus analyst Joshua Kucera said. Azerbaijan later added a host of demands to that March deal, including amendments to Armenia's constitution to drop territorial claims for Karabakh, before signing the document. Pashinyan has announced plans for a constitutional referendum in 2027, but the issue remains deeply divisive among Armenians, with Kucera warning that this could yet derail the process. Kucera called the corridor "one potentially significant development" from the White House meeting, but added that missing key details could prove "serious stumbling blocks". Nevertheless, she added, even if many details were still missing and nothing was guaranteed, the deal still gave Armenians "a promise of a better life and then maybe even more peace in the region". 'It should not be ignored that Armenia's border with Iran is guarded by Russian border guards,' said Russia's Zakharova AFP
