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The anti-Azerbaijani slogans and statements during the annual march marking the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran on February 11 sent a strong message to Azerbaijan, Iran specialist Garik Misakyan told Panorama.am in an interview on Wednesday.

Experts consider this an unprecedented phenomenon, as previously only anti-American and anti-Israeli statements were made during the marches. According to Iran experts, this year's rally also made clear the political stance of the Iranian authorities on Azerbaijan.

Misakyan stresses with this step Iran essentially declared Azerbaijan an ideological enemy of the Islamic Republic, equating the Baku regime to Israel and listing the country among its enemies.

"The annual march marking the Islamic Revolution anniversary is a crucial event in terms of domestic and foreign policy. According to official figures, this year 20 million people took part in it. It has always featured anti-American and anti-Israeli sentiments, with no mention of any other state. The biggest enemies of Iran were referred to. This year, most likely in view of the problems with Azerbaijan and Baku's policy towards Iran, anti-Azerbaijani slogans as well as flags of Azerbaijani organization called "Hosseinites" appeared, equating them to Hezbollah, operating in Lebanon, i.e. a military structure promoting Iran’s political goals," he said.

The expert underscores that victory marches in Iran are supported by the government and any calls during them are impossible without state permission.

"Iran did not hide this. This should not be seen as an ordinary rally, but as a serious political message to Azerbaijan – if it proceeds with its policy against Iran, it will be regarded as an enemy state," he said, recalling that relations between the two countries in the region have recently been strained and the Azerbaijani Embassy in Iran suspended its activities after the attack in late January.

According to the expert, despite the difficult situation at least at this point Iran does not want a final severance of relations with Azerbaijan. At the same time, he says it is likely that certain actions are being taken behind-the-scenes, stressing talks about national minorities living in Azerbaijan have intensified.

In the current situation, the expert stresses the need for Armenia to deepen relations with Iran as much as possible in all spheres.

"The Iranian ambassador recently said that opening an Armenian consulate in Tabriz would be an exemplary step. In other words, Iran clearly tells Armenia to open a consulate in Tabriz. Iran has a great desire to cooperate with us because it realizes that it must try to restore its influence in the Caucasus which diminished after the Artsakh war. The so-called "Zangezur" corridor is a red line for Iran in this sense, because they have come to associate it with the territorial integrity of their country and consider the fight against it as protection of Iran's borders," the expert said.