Russia’s Lavrov to Visit Iran for Regional Talks Monday

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will visit the Iranian capital, Tehran, on Monday for talks with regional counterparts, his ministry’s spokeswoman has confirmed.   

Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported earlier that the foreign ministers of Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Armenia had been invited for the talks.   

“We confirm Lavrov’s planned talks in Tehran on Monday,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told the TASS and RIA news agencies.   

The talks come amid tensions over the Middle East and unresolved disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which launched a lightning offensive against Armenian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh last month.   

Armenia later confirmed that its foreign minister would attend the meeting.   

A full list of attendees has not yet been released, but Armenia’s northern neighbor, Georgia, said Sunday that it would not be attending, its foreign ministry told the Interpress news agency.  

Georgia applied for EU membership together with Ukraine and Moldova after Russia invaded its pro-Western neighbor in February 2022.   

Since launching its assault, Russia has turned to Iran for military support and economic partnerships as both countries face a raft of Western sanctions.   

Western countries have accused Tehran of supporting Russia’s offensive in Ukraine by providing it with large quantities of drones and other weaponry.
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