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CHANGE OF THE GUARD IN NEIGHBORING IRAN: ELECTION OF NEW PRESIDENT IN ISLAMIC REPUBLIC AS SEEN FROM YEREVAN
http://www.armenianow.com/news/47001/armenia_iran_elections_president_hassan_rohani
NEWS | 18.06.13 | 16:23
By SIRANUYSH GEVORGYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
Hassan Rohani's election as new president of Iran will not bring
about any sharp changes in the Islamic Republic's political tack,
nor will it impact the country's traditionally good relations with its
northern neighbor Armenia, according to a Yerevan-based Iran expert.
At a press conference today Vardan Voskanyan predicted at least no
worsening in the relations between Yerevan and Tehran during the
tenure of Rohani, who was elected to succeed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as
president in the June 14 ballot.
"One should bear in mind one important circumstance: Armenian-Iranian
relations are mainly not conditioned by the changes of presidents or
elections. These are stable and dynamically developing relations and,
fortunately, there has never been any aggravation in this relationship
ever since Armenia gained independence," said Voskanyan. "If we look
around, we will see that Iran has had tensions and uneasy relations
with its other regional neighbors more than once."
The expert noted that during the election campaign Rohani did not make
any statement on Armenia, while leveling sharp criticism at Azerbaijan,
in particular, stating that this country is the most serious threat
to regional security. As a candidate Rohani also criticized Turkey
for its 'unsubstantiated claims' to leadership.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan was quick to congratulate 64-year-old
Rohani on his success in the Iranian presidential elections. Rohani
formerly served as head of Iran's nuclear negotiating team and after
his election stated that he was ready for direct talks with the United
States around Iran's controversial nuclear program, provided, however,
that Washington abstains from interfering in the internal affairs of
Iran and recognizes Tehran's right to a peaceful nuclear program.
Voskanyan said that Rohani is perceived as a reformist among Iranian
politicians, while his rivals in the elections were representatives
of the conservative wing. But the expert added that in Iran both
reformists and conservatives, as a rule, do not go beyond the
boundaries drawn by the country's spiritual leader, who is the top
policymaker in the Islamic Republic.
Voskanyan said that Rohani's elections was a little bit of a surprise
considering the fact that opinion polls and surveys initially did not
show him as a favorite in the race, but his chances were boosted due
to support from two former presidents as well as votes coming from
women and young people.
Peaceful elections, the expert said, raise Iran's image in the Islamic
world, and as one of the few stable states in the region today Iran
appears a very favorable neighbor to Armenia at present.
Meeting on the sidelines of the G8 summit that opened in Northern
Ireland on Monday the U.S. and Russian presidents expressed their
optimism on the Iran issue. Barrack Obama, in particular, said on
Monday that Iran's election of a moderate as its next president was
a sign that Iranians want to move in a different direction, but he
was uncertain whether it would lead to a breakthrough over Tehran's
nuclear ambitions.
It is also interesting from the Armenian perspective that
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan was among those
who addressed his congratulations to Rohani on the election as Iran's
president. As head of an internationally unrecognized state Sahakyan
usually does not send his congratulations to leaders of nations
that are members of the UN or otherwise enjoy an internationally
recognized status.
"I think there is nothing bad about it, that is, the Artsakh Republic
is trying to show it is a member of the international community,"
said Voskanyan. "Regardless of whether it is recognized or not, the
Artsakh Republic is one of Iran's northern neighbors and, in fact, it
has a larger stretch of the border with Iran than Armenia. I think that
in the future, out of its own economic and security considerations,
Iran should only promote growth and infrastructure development in
the liberated territory [in Karabakh]."
From: A. Papazian
http://www.armenianow.com/news/47001/armenia_iran_elections_president_hassan_rohani
NEWS | 18.06.13 | 16:23
By SIRANUYSH GEVORGYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
Hassan Rohani's election as new president of Iran will not bring
about any sharp changes in the Islamic Republic's political tack,
nor will it impact the country's traditionally good relations with its
northern neighbor Armenia, according to a Yerevan-based Iran expert.
At a press conference today Vardan Voskanyan predicted at least no
worsening in the relations between Yerevan and Tehran during the
tenure of Rohani, who was elected to succeed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as
president in the June 14 ballot.
"One should bear in mind one important circumstance: Armenian-Iranian
relations are mainly not conditioned by the changes of presidents or
elections. These are stable and dynamically developing relations and,
fortunately, there has never been any aggravation in this relationship
ever since Armenia gained independence," said Voskanyan. "If we look
around, we will see that Iran has had tensions and uneasy relations
with its other regional neighbors more than once."
The expert noted that during the election campaign Rohani did not make
any statement on Armenia, while leveling sharp criticism at Azerbaijan,
in particular, stating that this country is the most serious threat
to regional security. As a candidate Rohani also criticized Turkey
for its 'unsubstantiated claims' to leadership.
Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan was quick to congratulate 64-year-old
Rohani on his success in the Iranian presidential elections. Rohani
formerly served as head of Iran's nuclear negotiating team and after
his election stated that he was ready for direct talks with the United
States around Iran's controversial nuclear program, provided, however,
that Washington abstains from interfering in the internal affairs of
Iran and recognizes Tehran's right to a peaceful nuclear program.
Voskanyan said that Rohani is perceived as a reformist among Iranian
politicians, while his rivals in the elections were representatives
of the conservative wing. But the expert added that in Iran both
reformists and conservatives, as a rule, do not go beyond the
boundaries drawn by the country's spiritual leader, who is the top
policymaker in the Islamic Republic.
Voskanyan said that Rohani's elections was a little bit of a surprise
considering the fact that opinion polls and surveys initially did not
show him as a favorite in the race, but his chances were boosted due
to support from two former presidents as well as votes coming from
women and young people.
Peaceful elections, the expert said, raise Iran's image in the Islamic
world, and as one of the few stable states in the region today Iran
appears a very favorable neighbor to Armenia at present.
Meeting on the sidelines of the G8 summit that opened in Northern
Ireland on Monday the U.S. and Russian presidents expressed their
optimism on the Iran issue. Barrack Obama, in particular, said on
Monday that Iran's election of a moderate as its next president was
a sign that Iranians want to move in a different direction, but he
was uncertain whether it would lead to a breakthrough over Tehran's
nuclear ambitions.
It is also interesting from the Armenian perspective that
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic President Bako Sahakyan was among those
who addressed his congratulations to Rohani on the election as Iran's
president. As head of an internationally unrecognized state Sahakyan
usually does not send his congratulations to leaders of nations
that are members of the UN or otherwise enjoy an internationally
recognized status.
"I think there is nothing bad about it, that is, the Artsakh Republic
is trying to show it is a member of the international community,"
said Voskanyan. "Regardless of whether it is recognized or not, the
Artsakh Republic is one of Iran's northern neighbors and, in fact, it
has a larger stretch of the border with Iran than Armenia. I think that
in the future, out of its own economic and security considerations,
Iran should only promote growth and infrastructure development in
the liberated territory [in Karabakh]."
From: A. Papazian