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Armenian PM confirms Yerevan received US proposal on managing transport corridor with Baku

Nikol Pashinyan did not rule out the possibility of the Russian side managing the transport corridor

YEREVAN, July 16. /TASS/. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed that Yerevan received a US proposal on the management of the transport corridor between Armenia and Azerbaijan to restore transit in the South Caucasus.

"At present, this is a proposal from the United States and we are discussing it. We are interested in it, but we have not yet reached agreement on this issue. Can such agreement be reached? Yes, it can," he said, responding to a question about which country or international organization could gain control over the transport corridor as part of a peace agreement with Azerbaijan.

The European Union (EU) is interested in transport route management, Pashinyan pointed out, adding that this issue was discussed during his recent visit to Brussels and Paris on July 14. "There is a program called Global Gateway [the European Union’s initiative for infrastructure and transport development] that addresses this issue. China has also taken an interest in it, you know its global project ‘One Belt One Road.’ Fortunately, this is an area in which we have investment interests. We need to make proper use of them and create new opportunities," Pashinyan said.

The Armenian prime minister did not rule out the possibility of the Russian side managing the transport corridor. So far, discussions are ongoing and proposals are being made, he noted. "Whatever happens, we will consider any issue based on the principles of the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and jurisdiction of the Republic of Armenia," Pashinyan said.

US proposal and corridor through Armenia’s Syunik region

Local media outlets reported earlier that the US had issued a proposal according to which a private company would control a transport corridor linking the main part of Azerbaijan with its enclave in Nakhichevan as part of the peace agreement between Baku and Yerevan. The route, known in Azerbaijan as the Zangezur corridor, passes through Armenia’s Syunik region.

Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev allegedly discussed this issue at a meeting in Abu Dhabi on July 10. The Armenian Foreign Ministry denied plans to transfer control of the corridor to another country.

US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said that Washington was ready to lease for 100 years a part of the Armenian territory connecting Azerbaijan and its enclave in Nakhichevan, which borders Turkey.