We welcome the efforts being made by Armenia and Azerbaijan to achieve peace. We are against war and in favor of peace. Iran's ambassador to Armenia, Mehdi Sobhani, told this to reporters at the Iranian embassy in Armenia Friday.

"There is no alternative to peace in the region; peace must be established in the region. This is our [i.e. Iran’s] principled position. We welcome and support the dialogue that is taking place between Armenia and Azerbaijan to establish peace," said Sobhani.

Referring to the fact that the US has intensified its efforts to have an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty signed, the Iranian ambassador said: "As for the US, we believe that when the great ‘devil’ sets foot in the region, it pursues other goals. Instead of relying on the peace, security, and peaceful living of the peoples of the region, they pursue other goals. If they want to bypass and exclude some countries from these [peace] talks, it means that their desire is not original. We [i.e. Iran] want comprehensive peace to prevail [in the region]. The US uses its tools to achieve its goals."