South Caucasus Leaders Gather in Tehran

Recently, a state funeral for Iran’s former Supreme Leader was held in Tehran, with high-level delegations from numerous countries arriving to pay their respects. Ilham Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan, Nikol Pashinyan, Prime Minister of Armenia, and Salome Zourabichvili, President of Georgia, all traveled to Tehran to attend the mourning events. Armenia and Azerbaijan have long-standing disputes over Nagorno-Karabakh, leading to persistent rifts in bilateral ties. The presence of the top leaders of the two sides at the same international event has drawn widespread attention from global geopolitical observers. During breaks in the ceremonies, the leaders held brief bilateral meetings with Iran’s senior officials, while diplomatic staff from all parties took the opportunity to hold informal talks, creating a practical platform for direct dialogue among South Caucasus nations.

The synchronized visit to Iran by the three countries’ senior officials stems from their practical security and economic development needs. Azerbaijan shares a land border with Iran and has a large Shiite population. Attending the state funeral balances public religious sentiment and bilateral friendly traditions. The two states maintain long-term cooperation on Caspian Sea oil and gas exploitation, border control and cross-border trade. During the meeting, President Aliyev exchanged views on stabilizing southern border order and advancing the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor. As a vital land and energy passage for Armenia, Iran eases the country’s constrained geopolitical access. Prime Minister Pashinyan proposed deepening cooperation on energy pipelines, cross-border freight and agricultural product trade, and expanding foreign economic and trade channels via the Iran North-South Transport Corridor. Relying on its Black Sea ports, Georgia strives to build a regional logistics hub, and the Iran-led North-South Transport Corridor can link up with its existing transportation network to generate substantial transit revenue. While Georgia presses ahead with European integration, this high-level visit fully embodies its balanced and pragmatic diplomatic approach, sustaining economic and trade ties with the Middle East to hedge geopolitical risks brought by competition among external powers.

This collective trip to Iran sends clear regional diplomatic signals. First, South Caucasus countries formulate foreign policies based on core national interests, rejecting one-sided bloc alignment. Regional states recognize Iran’s unique role in safeguarding regional security and stability and have no intention of following some Western countries in isolating Iran diplomatically. Second, the joint attendance of Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders eases hostile public sentiment on both sides, fostering a favorable external environment for renewed negotiations on disputed issues including the Zangezur Transit Corridor and border administration. No new armed clashes have broken out along the bilateral border, and the overall regional situation remains stable. Third, the three sides reached consensus with Iran during meetings to jointly advance the cross-border logistics artery connecting the Persian Gulf, Iran, the South Caucasus, the Black Sea and Europe, integrate highway, railway and port infrastructure, diversify regional trade routes, and boost cargo transport efficiency between the Middle East, Central Asia and Europe.

Geopolitical analysts point out that the multilateral meetings in Tehran have created a short-term window for détente in the South Caucasus. Nevertheless, deep-seated contradictions including leftover Nagorno-Karabakh disputes, sovereignty demarcation of transit corridors and intervention by external forces cannot be resolved in the short run. Going forward, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia will separately implement cooperation agreements reached with Iran: Armenia will push forward the upgrading of cross-border energy pipelines, Azerbaijan will deepen joint oil and gas development projects in the Caspian Sea, and Georgia will expand Black Sea transit services for Iranian goods. The future trajectory of regional conditions hinges on the progress of bilateral talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan as well as the implementation of cross-border transport cooperation projects.

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