Conversations on Groong - August 16, 2025

In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with analyst Hamid Bahrami about Iran’s shifting role in the South Caucasus following the White House meeting between Trump, Pashinyan, and Aliyev that unveiled the TRIPP corridor, also known as the Trump Route. We examine how the project threatens to bypass and encircle Iran, potentially cutting it off from Russia and the Black Sea, while serving broader US and Israeli strategic aims. The discussion explores Iran’s decades of passivity in the region, its missed opportunities, and the wake-up call of the 44-day war, before turning to how Tehran might now defend its red lines through deeper cooperation with Russia, China, and Armenia. 

Topics:

• TRIPP Corridor & US Involvement
• US-Israel Strategy & War Risks
• Iran’s Missed Opportunities & Shifts
• Future of Iran–Armenia Relations

Hamid Bahrami’s article published by the Institute for Iran and Eurasia Studies (IRAS) in Iran: https://www.iras.ir/%D8%B2%D9%86%DA%AF%D8%B2%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%8C-%D9%86%D9%82%D8%B7%D9%87-%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%81%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D9%82%D9%81%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B2-%D8%B5%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%AA%D8%A8%D9%86 

Guest: Hamid Bahrami

Hosts:

• Hovik Manucharyan
• Asbed Bedrossian

Episode 461 | Recorded: August 13, 2025

SHOW NOTES: https://podcasts.groong.org/461

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/lTYVEAuZ8fc

#ArmenianNews #Iran #Armenia #TRIPP #ZangezurCorridor

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