Treaty of Turkmenchay
The Treaty of Turkmenchay (; ) was an agreement between Qajar Iran and the Russian Empire, which concluded the Russo-Persian War (1826–1828). It was second of the series of treaties (the first was the 1813 Treaty of Gulistan and the last, the 1881 Treaty of Akhal) signed between Qajar Iran and Imperial Russia that forced Persia to cede or recognize Russian influence over the territories that formerly were part of Iran. The treaty was signed on 21 February 1828 (5 Sha'ban 1243) in Torkamanchay (a village between Tabriz and Tehran). It made Persia cede the control of several areas in the South Caucasus to Russia: the Erivan Khanate, the Nakhchivan Khanate and the remainder of the Talysh Khanate. The boundary between Russia and Persia was set at the Aras River. These territories are now Armenia, the south of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Nakhchivan and Iğdır Province (now part of Turkey). The treaty was signed for Persia by the Crown Prince Abbas Mirza and Allah-Yar Khan Asaf al-Daula, chancellor to Shah Fath Ali (of the Qajar dynasty), and for Russia by General Ivan Paskievich. Similarly to the 1813 Treaty of Gulistan, the treaty was imposed on Persia following a Russian military victory. Paskievich threatened to occupy Tehran in five days unless the treaty was signed. Following this treaty, as well as the Treaty of Gulistan, Russia had finished conquering all the Caucasus territories from Qajar Iran; what is now Dagestan, eastern Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia, all of which had formed part of its very concept for centuries. The areas north of the Aras River, such as the territory of the contemporary nations of Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the North Caucasian Republic of Dagestan, were Iranian until they were occupied by Russia during the 19th century. Following the two treaties, the formerly Iranian territories came under Russian, and later Soviet control for approximately 180 years, where Dagestan remains a constituent republic within the Russian Federation to this day. Comprising most of the territory ceded in the Gulistan and Turkmenchay treaties, three separate nations would gain independence following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991: namely Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. Terms The terms of the treaty are as follow Article 4: Persia ceded the Erivan Khanate (most of present-day central Armenia), the Nakhchivan Khanate (most of the present-day Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan), the Talysh Khanate (southeastern Azerbaijan), and the Ordubad and Mughan regions (now also part of Azerbaijan) and also reiterated the cessions made to Russia in the Treaty of Gulistan Article 6: Persia promised to pay Russia 10 korur in gold or 20 million silver rubles (in 1828 currency). Article 7: Russia promised to support Abbas Mirza as the heir to the throne of Persia on the death of Shah Fath Ali (the clause became moot when Abbas Mirza predeceased Shah Fath Ali). Article 8: Persian ships lost full rights to navigate all of the Caspian Sea and its coasts, which were given to Russia. Persia recognised capitulation rights for