Iran clarifies definition of extra-regional forces, identifies countries

Iran’s Ambassador to Armenia Mehdi Sobhani has provided clarification on which countries his nation considers to be extra-regional forces.

"When we talk about extra-regional forces, we mean countries on the other side of the ocean, which (in case of anything) will not face demographic (and other) problems," Sobhani told a press conference, Caliber.Az reports citing Armenian media.

Highlighting the perceived interference of certain countries from afar, Sobhani emphasized that "from across the ocean they come here and try to make decisions for the peoples of this region." The ambassador specified that the focus of this characterization is on some European countries and the United States.

He explained that Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Russia and Türkiye are considered regional countries.

"Russia has a border with the Caucasus, it is not considered a non-regional country," the diplomat added.