Strengthening Common Interests in Ramsar
The fourth tri-lateral meeting between the foreign ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Turkey and Azerbaijan was held in Ramsar. In this meeting, issues related to the regional developments were discussed. It is natural that all three countries have common concerns and interests which lead them to have such meetings. Their last three meetings had good outcomes which encouraged them to continue this path. The people of these three countries welcome this move and these meetings have positive impacts on the relations between Iran, Turkey and Azerbaijan and in turn improve the economic and trade relations between them.
Iran, Turkey and Azerbaijan are all members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. They are all faced with security threats caused by terrorism, drugs and religious radicalism. The logistic atmosphere of all three countries is somehow intertwined with each other. Iran needs Azerbaijan for its ground access (railroad and road) to Russia, although it also has access through the Caspian Sea. Azerbaijan needs Iran to gain access to free waters. Iran needs to pass Turkey to reach Europe and Turkey needs Iran to reach central Asia. Iran and Azerbaijan provide Turkey’s hydrocarbon energy.
Millions of Iranians travel to Turkey each year. Citizens of Iran and Turkey do not need visas to travel to the other country and citizens of Azerbaijan travel to Iran without a visa (although Iran has demanded this country to cancel its visa for Iranians but Azerbaijan has not yet accepted this measure). These are examples of the economic and geographical interconnectedness of these three countries. Thus, it is natural that the three neighboring countries of Iran, Turkey and Azerbaijan have cooperation at the highest level and make efforts to maintain these relations.
The fourth trilateral meeting which was held in Ramsar amidst the present tense situation of the region is a sign of effective diplomacy and multilateralism. In other words, this meeting shows that there is an understanding between these three countries and indicates that the three important states of the region have reached this understanding and maturity to establish dialogue and continue their consultations about regional issues within the framework of common cooperation. Therefore, this meeting is important in economic, cultural, security and political aspects.
The issue of the Syrian crisis which has had negative impacts on the relations between Iran and Turkey during the past years and some Azerbaijani citizens joining the ISIS terrorists in Syria are issues of concern and Azerbaijani officials can benefit from the experiences of the Islamic Republic of Iran in its fight against terrorism. The Islamic Republic of Iran can render its experiences in security issues and exchange of information to its two neighboring countries. Such meetings between the three countries are proper measures to eliminate the misunderstandings. Nonetheless, perhaps the most important aspect of these meetings is its economic outcome because the improvement of economic relations will lead to the political and security developments and guarantee good relations.
Despite the occasional tensions between Iran and Turkey and Iran and Azerbaijan, their relations have never been cut. All three countries have realized that they can resolve even deep differences with dialogue.