ArmInfo. The Armenian government possesses the necessary legal instruments and grounds to terminate the concession agreement with the Russian Federation concerning Armenia’s railways, but will not resort to such a measure. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said this in an interview with Infocom.
«We are not going to speak the language of ultimatums. This language is unacceptable in international relations. Therefore, this issue does not lie in the realm of legal decisions, but exclusively in the political sphere. We want to resolve this issue in a friendly atmosphere and ask our Russian colleagues to sell the concession rights to a third country, provided that this decision is acceptable to both Armenia and Russia,» Pashinyan said, once again emphasizing that this request stems from Armenia’s need to actively participate in international railway transport.
It should be recalled that on August 24, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called on Russia from the parliamentary rostrum to show flexibility and sell the concession for Armenia’s railways to a third friendly party. He said that there was an offer to purchase the concession for $400 million. Pashinyan emphasized that under Russia’s concessionary management of Armenia’s railway network, Armenia could lose a historic opportunity to integrate into the international railway network.
It should be recalled that the first time Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan voiced the proposal for Russia to sell the railway concession was on February 13. At the time, speaking with journalists, he said that the fact that the Armenian railways were managed under a concession by the Russian side created competitive problems for Armenia, and that many international partners wanted to bypass Armenian territory when implementing infrastructure projects. In this context, he suggested that the Russian Federation consider selling the concession to a third, friendly country. As examples, he suggested Kazakhstan, the UAE or Qatar.
In Russia, Pashinyan’s assertions are called unfounded, and officials say they do not intend to sell the concession.
It should be recalled that CJSC "South Caucasus Railway" is a 100% subsidiary of OJSC "Russian Railways". On February 13, 2008, in Yerevan, OJSC "Russian Railways" and the Republic of Armenia signed a concession agreement transferring the republic’s railway transport system to the management of CJSC "South Caucasus Railway". Under the agreement, the concession management term is 30 years, with the right to extend it for another 10 years after the first twenty years of operation, by mutual consent of the parties. The responsibilities of CJSC "South Caucasus Railway" include modernizing the railway infrastructure of the Republic of Armenia, developing cooperation with Armenia’s neighboring states, and developing domestic and international passenger and freight transportation. The company’s investments amount to $572 million. CJSC "South Caucasus Railway" began its operations on June 1, 2008.
