Iran ‘concerned’ by Israeli ‘presence’ in Caucasus

Al Jazeera :
Iran has “serious concerns” about Israel’s presence in the Caucasus, as tensions mount between Iran and Azerbaijan over Baku’s ties with Israel, a major arms supplier.
Iran’s new Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who is in Moscow for talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, said on Wednesday that Iran “certainly will not tolerate geopolitical change and map change in the Caucasus”.
“We have serious concerns about the presence of terrorists and Zionists in this region,” Amirabdollahian told reporters in Moscow.
Tension has been high between Iran and Azerbaijan, which share a 700km (430 mile) border, since mid-September.
Iran’s army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have recently mobilised forces and held military drills close to its northwestern borders with Azerbaijan amid lingering tensions following Azerbaijan’s 44-day war with Armenia last year. Azerbaijan and Turkey, in response, launched a joint military drill starting on Wednesday.
Amirabdollahian has said the new Iranian administration is still reviewing the records of six rounds of talks in Vienna that concluded on July 20.