By T.K.
Tehran| August 9, 2025
The recently announced “Trump Corridor” — a U.S.-leased transport route linking mainland Azerbaijan with Nakhchivan through Armenia for 99 years — will create an unprecedented geopolitical reality for Iran: a direct border with American-controlled territory.
Under the deal, the corridor will remain under Armenian jurisdiction but be operated by a U.S.-backed consortium, making it effectively American-administered.
For Iranians traveling to Armenia, the route’s completion would mean crossing through a U.S.-controlled zone — a prospect Tehran would call “the biggest hell for Iran for the next century.”
The project, presented as a peace and trade initiative by Washington, Baku, and Yerevan, has already drawn sharp criticism from Iranian officials, who warn it could disrupt the region’s security balance.