The Guardian writes about prospects of agreement between Yerevan and Baku and the "Trump Route"
YEREVAN, August 8. /ARKA/. The prospective peace agreement expected to be signed today in Washington by Armenian PM Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Aliyev at the White House could put an end to decades of conflict and set the stage for a reopening of key transportation corridors across the South Caucasus that have been shut since the early 1990s, a story in The Guardian says.
It says the agreement, according to officials speaking to the Associated Press, would give the US leasing rights to develop the corridor It would link Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan region, which is separated from the rest of the country by a 32km (20-mile) patch of Armenia’s territory and name it the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity.
The transit corridor is expected to eventually include a rail line, oil and gas lines, and fibre optic lines, allowing for the movement of goods and eventually people. The deal does not call for the US to pay for the construction of the transit corridor, but instead for private corporations to develop it.
The deal was reached after a visit earlier this year by Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff to Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku and continued talks between the parties.
US president Donald Trump announced he will host the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan on Friday for what he called a “Historic Peace Summit” aimed at ending decades of hostilities between the two former Soviet republics.
“Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan and president Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan “will join me at the White House for an official Peace Signing Ceremony,” Trump posted Thursday on his Truth Social platform.
Trum said: “Many Leaders have tried to end the War, with no success, until now, thanks to ‘TRUMP.’ My Administration has been engaged with both sides for quite some time,” he added, saying he was “very proud of these courageous Leaders for doing the right thing.”
The ARKA news agency sent requests to Armenia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the press secretary of the prime minister, asking them to comment on information from The Guardian.-0-
