ARF Bureau member Hrant Markarian left Yerevan Sunday–December 21 for a one week visit to Iran. Markarian was welcomed at Tehran’s airport by ARF Bureau member Albert Ajemian–representatives of the "Alik" association–and his relatives.
Upon arrival–Markarian met with Ali Ahani of the Iranian Foreign Ministry–who is also responsible for relations with Europe and the United States. Markarian was accompanied by Ajemian during his one hour meeting with Ahani. One of the topics discussed was military cooperation between Armenia and Iran–and the ARF’s role in fostering cooperation in this field. The ARF’s desire to strengthen relations between the two countries was also noted.
Ahani underlined Iran’s desire to see an economically and politically developed Armenia–which would contribute to peace and stability in the region.
The recent recognition of the Armenian Genocide around the world was also discussed. Ahani told the ARF Bureau representatives that his country closely follows developmen’s related to this issue and will continue to pay attention to all updates.
Markarian also intends to visit his birthplace–New Julfa–during his week-long stay in Iran.