Mirzoyan met with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi there on Monday. Ghalibaf reportedly told him that the South Caucasus “must not become an arena for geopolitical rivalry among foreign powers” while Araghchi warned against the “the interference of extra-regional forces” in the region’s affairs.

Iranian leaders have repeatedly voiced such concerns with regard to the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) that would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave as well as Turkey. Tehran fears that the transit arrangement could put Armenian control of the border at risk and lead to U.S. security presence at Iran’s doorstep.

“In Iran — at least in my impression — the uproar surrounding the TRIPP, deliberately stirred up by certain Armenian media outlets and opposition circles, does not correspond to reality at all,” said Mirzoyan. “Iran is satisfied with the complete transparency we have demonstrated throughout the TRIPP process as well as with the economic opportunities that unblocking [transport routes] will offer to Iran itself.”

“We held a very productive discussion; questions were raised, and answers were provided,” he told the Armenian parliament.

The Iranian ambassador to Armenia, Khalil Shirgholami, indicated in July that Yerevan has still not addressed his country’s “very legitimate and logical” concerns. He called for the creation of a “mechanism” to manage “potential risks of U.S. presence and threats to Iran” emanating from the TRIPP.

Shirgholami said the U.S. and Israeli military campaign against the Islamic Republic underlined the perceived risks. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian indicated the next day that he is undeterred by Tehran’s stance and remains committed to implementing the project “as soon as possible.”

Echoing another statement made by Pashinian last week, Mirzoyan also said that Yerevan will deepen Armenian-Iranian in various areas as long as they do not run counter to Western sanctions against Iran.

According to Armenian government data, Armenian-Iranian trade rose by 6 percent, to about $438 million, in the first seven months of this year. Iran is also one of Armenia’s two commercial conduits to the outside world. It accounted for roughly 30 percent of cargo shipments to and from the landlocked South Caucasus country before the start of the U.S. airstrikes.