September 28, 2006 - 20:52 AMT
Any Military Action Against Iran Will Be Catastrophic for Whole Region
"Our relation with Iran is developing dynamically, and there exist no disagreements between the two countries. We have a large trade agreement," Armenian President Robert Kocharian said in an interview with Al Jazeera TV. "We are undertaking huge energy projects - huge regarding the size of Armenia - such as the gas pipeline and a third electricity line. We are also planning to build a large Hydroelectric plant on the Arax River to generate electricity, in addition to other projects in the energy sector. There is a very wide cooperation between Armenia and Iran; therefore, any problems between Iran and the West would definitely have negative effects on our projects. For us, Iran is a very important country in the region with which we have had historical relations. I consider the Iranians to be the heirs of a very old civilization, and we respect their culture. The Iranian nuclear program is a very sensitive issue between Iran and the West, particularly the USA. We hope and believe that a diplomatic solution to this problem will be found. We also believe that implementing any kind of sanctions against Iran will not be practical; any military action against Iran will be catastrophic for the whole region. We hope that this problem will be resolved peacefully. The suggestions made by the Six countries provides optimism. As we understood, the Iranian position is very positive regarding these suggestions. This problem needs patience, continuous work and compromise from all sides to solve this issue. Armenia is one of the countries that will benefit most from a peaceful solution to this problem," the RA President said, reported Groong.