By Diana Arushanyan

Armenian News-NEWS.am on Wednesday conducted an interview with the Iranian ambassador to Armenia, Khalil Shirgholami. Below is the text of this interview.

Mr. Ambassador, what is your opinion on the future of the ceasefire, especially considering that Israel has continued to strike Lebanon today?

From the very beginning, there were goodwill initiatives by some mediators to try to end this aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran’s fundamental position is that a ceasefire alone is not enough. The conflict against our country must be stopped. During the 12-day war, we already tried such a ceasefire, and it was quite fragile. You saw for yourself that six months later the United States and the Israeli regime attacked our country again, which was a difficult choice and a serious aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Therefore, the fundamental position of our country is that there must be real guarantees that this aggression will not be repeated again. In addition, any cessation of hostilities must also include Lebanon in the conflict. Therefore, the United States must make the Zionist regime [i.e. Israel] understand that if the hostility and conflict are to cease, then the Zionist regime of Israel must also have obligations. Unfortunately, today we are witnessing terrible attacks against the Lebanese people in the south of Beirut, and many people are being killed. Therefore, there is any chance of ending the conflict only if all parties assume obligations.

How do you assess Armenia’s position during the war?

We have been in constant contact with Armenian officials in various fields, and the Armenian government has been quite helpful in terms of humanitarian assistance, in particular in the transfer of citizens who needed to return to Iran or travel to other countries through the territory of Armenia. We also received humanitarian aid shipments—medicines and food, and not only from the Armenian government, but also from Armenian private companies and Armenian citizens.

Since you talked about humanitarian aid, the bombing has now stopped in Iran, but there are still thousands of wounded. Have there been discussions with the Armenian side, for example, about sending doctors from Armenia to help the wounded?

In fact, in the healthcare sector, Iran has highly qualified specialists—doctors, nurses, as well as a developed healthcare system, and the Iranian Red Crescent Society is working actively and dynamically. Thousands of volunteers have also expressed their willingness to provide assistance in this area. So there is no problem or challenge in this regard. Of course, we greatly appreciate all the expressions of solidarity we have received from Armenia, as well as the support we have received from many other friendly nations during this period of military operations against our country. We continue to appreciate it and are in touch with everyone.

There are reports that Armenian neighborhoods in Iran have been bombed, and at least one Armenian has died as a result of the attack. Is there any additional information, for example, about the damaged Armenian infrastructure in Iran or the Armenians there?

As a result of the strikes by the United States and Israel, there are Armenian citizens who, unfortunately, were left homeless. In addition, there are Armenian oases, not only residential buildings, but also cultural sites and even churches, which were damaged to some extent as a result of the strikes by the aggressors. And yes, as you mentioned, we also unfortunately had one Iranian-Armenian casualty in the city of Isfahan. The Armenian community in Iran also showed its solidarity and determination to defend the homeland, as it has always done throughout history.

Before the outbreak of the war on February 28, negotiations were underway between Armenia and Iran to sign a strategic partnership. Those negotiations, of course, were suspended due to the war. What expectations does Tehran have in this regard now?

This has been the most complicated, the most difficult situation for Iran. Therefore, the priority was self-defense, the defense of our land, territory and dignity against the aggressors. However, not only with Armenia, but also with many other partners and friends, we had many agenda items for 2026, on which we will resume negotiations. We have important programs with Armenia also, as you have already mentioned, and after the end of the conflict, we will soon return to renegotiating and replanning all of those agenda items.