Iran ambassador to Armenia: US official said OSCE Minsk Group was created to ensure their presence in the region

I believe that the “3+3 format” can be successful if the participating countries want to achieve real peace and stability. Iran's Ambassador to Armenia, Mehdi Sobhani, stated this during a talk with reporters and analysts Tuesday.

"If the [aforesaid] platform achieves tangible success, then I am sure that others [i.e. Georgia] will be interested in participating in it. The problems of the region affect the countries of this region, and it is the countries of the region that should make efforts to solve these problems and become the guarantors of these solutions," said Sobhani.

Also, the Iranian diplomat urged to look for competition in other places, noting that there are platforms created for cooperation.

"Recently, I met with a representative of the Armenian intelligentsia, who earlier had a conversation with an American official and talked with him about the OSCE Minsk Group. The representative of the Armenian intelligentsia asked the American official: ‘Why was the OSCE Minsk Group created, which did not achieve any results over the course of 30 years?’ The American official replied that the OSCE Minsk Group was created to ensure their presence in the region. Therefore, it can be assumed that they did not pursue the goal of establishing peace in the region. If there is a war, the US will not suffer, but we, the countries and peoples living in the region, will suffer. Therefore, it is important to strive to establish real peace," stressed the Iranian envoy to Armenia.