TEHRAN- President Masoud Pezeshkian of Iran, accompanied by a delegation of his cabinet members, visited Armenia to strengthen bilateral relations across transport, infrastructure, and trade sectors. During the visit, Pezeshkian met with top Armenian officials to discuss strategic cooperation, particularly in transit corridors, regional connectivity, and economic partnerships.

During this trip, in order to enhance the level of relations, high-ranking officials of the both countries signed a joint statement and 10 memorandums of understanding and cooperation documents in the political, social, cultural, tourism, industrial, educational, road and urban development, art, and health fields in the presence of President Pezeshkian and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Developing transit corridors

On the sidelines of the visit, Iranian Minister of Transport and Urban Development Farzaneh Sadegh and Armenian Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Davit Hovhannisyan held a key meeting to advance transportation infrastructure, enhance logistic networks, and resolve transit disputes.

In this meeting, Sadegh highlighted the strategic importance of north–south and Persian Gulf–Black Sea corridors and urged improvements in Armenian road, rail, and logistics systems to facilitate the transfer of goods.

She also called for a revision of the roughly $330 disparity in tariffs between the two countries and stressed that new transit routes should avoid geopolitical disruptions.

Sadegh described the reopening of the Jolfa–Yerevan–Georgia rail link as a major step in boosting regional transit and characterized President Pezeshkian’s visit as a turning point in Tehran–Yerevan transport and logistics relations.

Hovhannisyan thanked Iran for its support, particularly following the 2024 earthquake, praised Iranian contractors’ performance, announced a tender for a new segment of the north–south route, and confirmed the formation of a joint working group to address tariff discrepancies for Iranian vehicles.

Targeting $3.0 billion of trade

In the economic arena, Iranian Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Seyed Mohammad Atabak met with Armenian Minister of Economy Gevorg Papoyan and announced a target to increase bilateral trade to $3.0 billion.

Both ministers proposed establishing a joint working group, including their deputies, to expedite agreements and facilitate commerce in industrial and trade sectors, highlighting the broader aim of deepening Iran–Armenia economic cooperation.

Establishing joint committee to ease border, customs issues

In another meeting, Mohammad Reza Bahraman, deputy head of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), met with the deputy head of Armenia’s State Revenue Committee to propose the creation of a joint four-party committee, including Iran and Armenia’s chambers of commerce and customs authorities.

The committee aims to resolve issues related to certificates of origin and other border and customs matters while fostering private-sector cooperation.

Bahraman emphasized that transparent border procedures benefit both Iranian traders and their Armenian counterparts.

He invited the Armenian delegation to visit Iran for joint events to further explore investment opportunities and strengthen relations.

In parallel, Hamid Asgari, ICCIMA’s international deputy, noted that Iran expects to leverage “green corridor” mechanisms, particularly for perishable goods, and stressed the importance of digitalizing customs processes to accelerate information flow and certificates of origin issuance.

Armenia’s State Revenue Committee deputy, Rafael Gorkian, confirmed that Armenia has increased investment in border infrastructure, including awarding a contract for a new border road to an Iranian company. He emphasized that illegal crossings will be strictly prevented and expressed hope that these measures will enhance bilateral economic cooperation.

In mid-July, Iran’s ambassador to Yerevan said that bilateral trade between Iran and Armenia has reached nearly $1.0 billion, reflecting deepening economic ties between the two neighbors.

Speaking to Armenian state television, Ambassador Mehdi Sobhani said trade volume between the two countries has grown steadily and is now approaching the $1.0 billion mark.

Data from Armenia’s official statistics agency, Armstat, shows that bilateral trade reached $737.4 million in 2024, a 6.5 percent increase compared with 2023. Trade in the first five months of 2025 totaled $278.7 million, up four percent year-on-year.

Earlier this year, Sobhani said Tehran aims to boost annual trade with Yerevan to $1.0 billion by 2025, a goal that now appears within reach.

The ambassador also highlighted growing tourism flows between the two countries.

“In the first 11 months of last year, around 276,000 Armenian citizens visited Iran, while 176,000 Iranian tourists traveled to Armenia during the same period,” he said, calling the trend a “natural process” amid expanding ties.

In the first 11 months of 2024, the number of Iranian visitors to Armenia rose 20 percent compared with 2023, according to the Armenian Tourism Committee. Iranians accounted for eight percent of Armenia’s 691,900 tourist arrivals in the first five months of this year — the third-largest group after visitors from Russia (37 percent) and Georgia (15 percent).

Iran and Armenia have been strengthening energy, transport, and trade cooperation in recent years, with joint infrastructure projects including a nearly complete electricity transmission line and expanded border crossings. The two sides have also committed to removing obstacles to deeper integration, especially in light of Armenia's strategic shift toward alternative trade routes following tensions with Azerbaijan.

Also, in mid-April, Armenia's ambassador to Iran Grigor Hovhannisyan called for expanded bilateral cooperation to raise trade volume between Tehran and Yerevan to $3.0 billion, stressing that current economic ties fall short of the two nations’ strong political relations.

According to Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA), Hovhannisyan made the remarks during a meeting with the chamber's president, saying Armenia places high priority on ties with Iran and is eager to strengthen cooperation across economic, political, and cultural spheres.

“We face no restrictions in deepening our relations. To reach our initial goal of $1.0 billion in trade and eventually hit the three billion mark, we need joint efforts, especially between the chambers of commerce of both countries,” the ambassador said.

He emphasized the need to facilitate trade delegations and promote investment opportunities in Armenia, adding that the Armenian embassy is ready to assist Iranian investors in exploring the market.

Hovhannisyan highlighted the vital role of the private sector in advancing bilateral economic relations and invited Iranian businesses to participate in expos and explore joint venture opportunities.

He also called for the creation of mechanisms between the two chambers to resolve challenges hindering trade.

Pointing to Iran's observer status in the Eurasian Economic Union and the prospects of free trade with the bloc, he said the two countries could jointly manufacture goods for export to the Eurasian market.

During the same meeting, ICCIMA Head Samad Hassanzadeh said Iran possesses significant capacity to cooperate with Armenia and sees the country’s location in Eurasia and shared cultural and social ties as strategic advantages.

“The Iranian private sector is ready to export technical and engineering services to Armenia and take part in infrastructure projects,” he said, noting potential collaborations in the health, medical, and pharmaceutical sectors as well.

He added that Iran’s private sector is capable of producing high-quality goods in fields such as oil, gas, petrochemicals, automotive, food industries, and construction materials.

Calling for improved support for Iranian tourists visiting Armenia, Hassanzadeh stressed the potential for expanding tourism and medical tourism between the two neighbors.

He also officially invited the Armenian ambassador to attend Iran Expo 2025, which opens on April 28 and is set to showcase Iran’s production and export capabilities to international business delegations.

EF/MA