During the preliminary discussion of the 2027 state budget at a joint meeting of the National Assembly’s standing committees, Armenian Foreign and International Trade Minister Ararat Mirzoyan also addressed the issue of unblocking regional links, noting that it could not be overlooked.
The minister noted that this is a major process and recalled that, since independence, Armenia has not had the opportunity to build economic relations and move in all four directions, having been under blockade. Now, however, economic, transit and transport infrastructure in the region is being opened up at an intensive pace.
“We are able to transport cargo through Azerbaijan’s territory, and this major unblocking initiative broadly aligns with the Armenian government’s ‘Crossroads of Peace’ vision and program, while the TRIPP project is a very significant component of it,” the minister said.
According to Mirzoyan, the next step is to sign the shareholders’ agreement and charter of the ‘TRIPP Development Company,’ which will essentially complete the TRIPP documentation process and allow work on the ground to begin.
“We are eager to see work on the ground begin as soon as possible and, after that, to see all TRIPP projects implemented and put into use as soon as possible. You will recall that by TRIPP projects we mean various types of infrastructure, primarily a railway, power transmission lines and fiber-optic cables. There is also a desire to have a gas pipeline, an oil pipeline and so on between the parties in the future,” Ararat Mirzoyan said.
Without going into figures, the minister noted that unblocking links and using the infrastructure would open up major economic opportunities for Armenia. However, there is also a political dimension, meaning that Armenia, Azerbaijan, our immediate neighbors and many countries in both the West and the East will have a significantly greater interest in maintaining peace and stability and fostering economic development in our region.
“Beyond being an economic program, this strengthens peace and makes it irreversible,” the Foreign and International Trade Minister emphasized.
