Customary neighborhood: Armenian FM on prospects of unblocking regional transport links

ArmInfo.  There is no corridor; there is TRIPP-Trump's route for international peace and  prosperity. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan stated this in an interview with DW.

"We got the impression that throughout all the months and years of  negotiations, the Azerbaijani side was trying to give this territory  some kind of extraterritorial corridor. For example, Azerbaijan  demanded that additional armed forces from a third country be  stationed along the railway. I remember them talking about Russian  troops being stationed along the railway. This, of course, was  unacceptable for us," the minister said.

All attributes of Armenia's sovereignty and national jurisdiction  over the infrastructure located along this section of the route, as  Mirzoyan emphasized, are recognized by Azerbaijan and the United  States. "So we don't have any additional corridor on our land." "It's  important to know that we're not just talking about this passage, not  just about connecting the main part of Azerbaijan with the Nakhchivan  Autonomous Republic.  The agreement is about unblocking all transport  links, all infrastructure between the two countries. Thus, for  example, we gain access to the Azerbaijani railway, to the entire  system, to the entire chain. Azerbaijan gains access to our railway.  Everything is like normal neighbors. We will be able to travel  through each other's territory. This is what we agreed on," the  Foreign Minister explained.

Management of this road, he said, should be carried out by an  Armenian-American consortium. The latter can hire subcontractors to  provide services, and these companies must be selected by mutual  agreement.

"The company that is selected must be approved by Armenia and the  United States. We are open to cooperation with many countries. I'm  not ruling out anyone, but there are some countries whose candidacies  could potentially be rejected," the minister said.