By: Reza Shafa
The republics of Nakhchivan and Azerbaijan, along with other Central Asian countries, continue to be at the centre of the Iranian regime’s export of fundamentalism and terrorism.
An internal report from inside the regime reads, “Central Asia and Azerbaijan, in virtue of their geopolitical status, are in the security sphere of the Islamic Republic of Iran. That is why the ninth administration has dedicated part of its foreign policy to this region. As such, the necessity of establishing a strong Iranian presence in Central Asia as well as the significance of this region must continually be promoted and explained.”
The Nakhchivan Republic, which is separate from the main territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan, has an autonomous government and has a majority Shiite population. It is as such an important target for the mullah regime’s export of fundamentalism. The regime’s consul in Nakhchivan is identified as Tabatabai, and he works with Nasser Hamidi-Zareh, the Iranian regime’s ambassador in Baku, to implement this policy under a diplomatic cover. These individuals have been briefed by the regime’s Foreign Ministry to have full cooperation with organs affiliated with the office of the mullahs’ Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, such as “The Association of Promoting Inter-Religious Cooperation,” and other regime organs used for exporting fundamentalism. One of the mullah regime’s agents in Nakhchivan is an individual named Mustafa Gholizadeh, and was sent years ago to Nakhchivan on behalf of an organ named “Religious Seminaries Abroad” in order to export the mullahs’ fundamentalism under the cover of teaching, training and guiding religious students at Nakhchivan’s seminary. Regarding the necessity of exporting fundamentalism to Nakhchivan, Gholizadeh has said:
“… If the leading figures of Shiite culture and education delay, then it is possible for the Shiite religion to be threatened in this small and autonomous republic. Unfortunately, our resources and intelligence are scarce. We must know that when our distribution of books and other materials for teaching religion are less, then others fill the gap. … Cultural representatives must do something and send people who have an interest in this matter. In my opinion, the best people who can help revive the buried culture are the students in Qom. They must revive the forgotten values of Shiites all over the world.”
In this regard, recently the regime has established a religious seminary in Nakhchivan named “The Religious Seminary of Amir al-Momenin,” the local director of which is an individual identified as Haj Sultan. This seminary is fully supervised by the mullahs’ regime and its expenses are paid out of the Iranian people’s pocket.
The Iranian regime’s measures and expansionist agenda in Nakhchivan have triggered opposition from the republic’s people and officials. Officials in Nakhchivan have banned the regime’s activities in this region, carried out under the banner of Islam. They have also prevented the entry of religious books to this region.
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Reza Shafa is an expert on the Iranian regime's Intelligence networks, both in Iran and abroad. He has done extensive research on Iranian Ministry of Information and Security (MOIS) also known as VEVAK, Intelligence Office of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and Qods Force among others. Currently he is a contributor to NCRI website.
