Iran's willingness to mediate for Turkey-Armenia is an peculiar tool of pressure on official Ankara, and is a response to Turkey's mediation between Syria (Iran's ally) and Israel (Iran's opponent).

"Iran wants to bring pressure on Turkey with using the Armenian factor," Iranian expert Hatam Ghaderi said.

"The Armenian lobby in Iran is strong, and using this factor, Armenians urge Iran to mediate for normalization of relations with Turkey," Ghaderi said in a phone conversation.

As Turkey mediates between Syria and Israel, Iran also wants to "play" with Turkey using the Armenian factor, according to him.

"Actually, Turkey first started to play with Iran and 'put its cards on the table' against this country. Teheran, in response, wants to put pressure on Turkey, using Armenia as the trump card," Ghaderi said.

Ufug Cosgun, a Turkish political scientist, supposes that Iran's statements about willingness to act as a mediator between Turkey and Armenia was made as an alternative to Turkey's mediation between Syria and Israel. According to Cosgun, this mediation may prove effective.

"Ankara has a series of principal and unchangeable conditions on normalization of relations with Armenia. If the latter accepts them, reconciliation will be beneficial for Azerbaijan as well," Cosgun said, Trend Azeri news agency reports.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki offered mediation during a phone conversation with his Armenian counterpart Edward Nalbandian.