Russia increases capacity of Upper Lars check point

YEREVAN, June 13. /ARKA/. Armenian Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan and his Russian counterpart Maxim Reshetnikov met at the Upper Lars checkpoint on the Russian-Georgian border on Saturday to discuss the reconstruction and increasing the capacity of the border crossing, which is the only overland route connecting Armenia with Russia and beyond.

According to the Armenian Economy Ministry, after the reconstruction, the capacity of the Upper Lars is to increase 6.4 times to handle more than 2,500 vehicles per day, up from current 800 vehicles.

"We all understand the importance of increasing the capacity of the checkpoint. It is a key condition for increasing trade and economic interaction between Russia and Armenia. That's why the reconstruction is being carried out here without interrupting the work of the checkpoint. The contractor company promised to finish it in the third quarter of 2022," Reshetnikov said.

The Upper Lars is the only checkpoint on the Russian-Georgian section of the border. It is largest in terms of cargo turnover by road transport - 4.3 million tons of cargo in 2021.