YEREVAN — Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan has dismissed reports suggesting significant Iranian concerns over the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), describing interpretations by some Armenian media outlets as exaggerated and far removed from reality.
Speaking to reporters on October 16 on the sidelines of COP17, Mirzoyan said Armenian officials have addressed questions raised by Tehran regarding the project.
“The Iranian side naturally has questions, and those questions have been answered. My impression is that the Iranian side is satisfied with the process,” Mirzoyan stated.
He explained that Iranian officials had specifically inquired whether American military forces would be stationed along the TRIPP route.
“They ask whether there will be an American armed presence along TRIPP. We tell them there will not be. The documents confirm this, and the reality confirms it. It is natural for them to raise such questions, and we provide accurate answers,” he said.
Responding to a journalist’s observation that Iranian officials have occasionally warned that the presence of third parties could destabilize the region, Mirzoyan described such statements as a general principle rather than necessarily a direct reference to TRIPP.
“I believe it is a basic principle that the armed presence of an external third party in relations between two countries would only complicate matters for those countries,” Mirzoyan said.
He added that such statements should not automatically be interpreted as referring to a particular situation.
During a separate briefing in Yerevan, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged Tehran’s concerns about any American presence in the region but emphasized Iran’s trust in Armenia.
Araghchi said Tehran remains confident that Armenia would not take actions threatening Iranian security.
The TRIPP project is intended to provide unimpeded transportation links between mainland Azerbaijan and the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic through Armenian territory while respecting Armenia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security.
A framework agreement on strategic cooperation between Armenia and the United States concerning TRIPP was initialed on May 26, 2026, and signed on June 4, according to the reported details.
