Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has formally asked Russia to take a decision on restoring strategic railway sections linking Armenia to the borders of Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave and Türkiye, as part of broader efforts to reopen transport corridors in the South Caucasus.
Pashinyan said the issue has been raised at the highest political levels, including in discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin and senior government officials.
“I have asked our Russian partners to urgently address the full restoration of the railway from Yeraskh to the Nakhchivan border and from Akhurik to the Turkish border,” he told journalists.
The Armenian PM added that if Russia is unable to carry out the work, Armenia would consider reclaiming control of those sections and completing the restoration independently.
Russia has been operating Armenia's railway system since 2008, after a 30-year concession agreement was signed. The agreement marked the establishment of South Caucasus Railway CJSC (owned by Russian Railways) which is the sole railway system in Armenia to this day.
The system spans about 780 kilometres of track, all built to the Russian gauge standard.
Restoring these rail links would mark a significant milestone in reopening transport and trade routes that have been largely dormant since the early 1990s.
The prime minister said the timeframe for restoration work is pressing, noting that a framework agreement between Armenia and the United States on the implementation of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) project creates momentum for reinvigorating regional connectivity.
“The appropriate time is now, and our desire is for this to be done now,” Pashinyan said, adding that processes are under way and would be communicated publicly.
Under the TRIPP project, envisaged as part of a broader initiative to normalise relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan and open transport links, a logistics corridor through southern Armenia would connect mainland Azerbaijan with its Nakhchivan exclave and Türkiye.
The project also involves the restoration of a 99-kilometre railway section in Armenia.
The Armenian Prime Minister reiterated the project’s broader aim, to establish a new Asia–Europe transit route under U.S. oversight.
According to him U.S. investments in the preparatory phase of the TRIPP project will amount to $140 million.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran are escalating, with Washington ordering a significant military build-up in the region and multiple countries evacu...
Two people were killed and around 40 injured when a tram derailed in central Milan on Friday (27 Februrary), a spokesperson for local firefighters sai...
Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), issued a statement on Friday (27 February) calling on Ankara to ...
Colombia’s commerce minister, Diana Marcela Morales, has said she will propose raising tariffs on certain Ecuadorian goods from 30% to 50%, as a tra...
Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said on Friday (27 February) that he had no knowledge of the crimes committed by Jeffrey Epstein and would not have...
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran are escalating, with Washington ordering a significant military build-up in the region and multiple countries evacuating diplomatic staff amid fears of further instability.
Speaking during a closed-door deposition in New York on Thursday (February), former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she did not “recall” ever meeting the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and had “no knowledge of his crimes”.
Pakistan’s declaration of an “open war” with Afghanistan must be understood in the context of months of escalating violence, regional analysts have said, describing the latest developments as a significant shift in the nature of the conflict.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to resolve their differences through dialogue, offering Tehran’s assistance to facilitate understanding between its eastern neighbours.
Tensions between the U.S. and Iran are escalating, with Washington ordering a significant military build-up in the region and multiple countries evacuating diplomatic staff amid fears of further instability.
The situation in Cuba was heating up and called for restraint following a deadly incident involving a Florida-registered speedboat off the coast of the Caribbean island, the Kremlin said on Thursday (26 February).
Another shipment of petroleum products from Azerbaijan to Armenia has been dispatched, with 39 rail tank cars carrying 4,500 tonnes of diesel fuel sent today, Report informs.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, arrived in Geneva and may hold talks with U.S. officials, according to the RIA news agency.
Pakistani air strikes hit a weapons depot on the western outskirts of Kabul overnight, triggering hours of secondary explosions that rattled homes across the Afghan capital and left residents fearing further violence.
Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), issued a statement on Friday (27 February) calling on Ankara to adopt legislation aimed at promoting political inclusion.
Pakistani air strikes hit a weapons depot on the western outskirts of Kabul overnight, triggering hours of secondary explosions that rattled homes across the Afghan capital and left residents fearing further violence.
Pakistan’s declaration of an “open war” with Afghanistan must be understood in the context of months of escalating violence, regional analysts have said, describing the latest developments as a significant shift in the nature of the conflict.
Israeli strikes killed five people in Gaza on Thursday (26 February), according to health officials in the territory. The Israeli military said separately that it had killed a militant who posed an imminent threat to its forces in southern Gaza.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to resolve their differences through dialogue, offering Tehran’s assistance to facilitate understanding between its eastern neighbours.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment