Lavrov says Azerbaijan-Armenia talks could alternate venues

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the TRIPP project and prospects for reopening communications in the South Caucasus while speaking to journalists after the 7th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA), held in Baku. Lavrov said Moscow had not received an official request to participate in TRIPP, but that Russia’s technical capabilities and readiness in the region were well known to all interested parties.

Operative Information Center-OMM reports that Lavrov said Russia welcomed steps toward normalizing relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia:

“We fully support the process of normalizing relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia and are ready to participate closely in infrastructure projects in the region. Russian Railways continues its operations under the South Caucasus Railway concession. We know this infrastructure well and provide its full technical maintenance,” the Russian foreign minister said.

Lavrov also drew attention to the “3+3” regional cooperation platform established at the initiative of Azerbaijan and Türkiye. He said the format was not limited to individual projects but encompassed the broader context of regional security and integration.

Lavrov also said he expected Azerbaijan and Armenia’s foreign ministers to agree on a venue for their next face-to-face meeting. He said it would be appropriate for diplomatic contacts to alternate, with the next meeting held in Azerbaijan and the one after that in Yerevan.

TRIPP, or the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, is a project envisaging a strategic transit route through Armenia’s Zangezur (Syunik) region. Under the project’s terms, the route would operate under Armenia’s sovereignty and jurisdiction and provide a direct, unimpeded land link between Azerbaijan and its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. As part of the project, Yerevan is granting the United States exclusive long-term rights of up to 99 years to develop the route. A framework agreement was signed during U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Yerevan in May-June this year.

Mikhail Kalugin, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Fourth Department for CIS countries, earlier said Moscow saw several geostrategic and technical risks in implementing the TRIPP project. Russia has cited the presence of Russian border guards on the Armenia-Iran border, the use of Russian-standard 1,520 mm rail lines to connect with Azerbaijan’s railway network, and the concession agreement for South Caucasus Railway, which remains in force until 2038, as legal realities. Moscow has also stressed that Armenia is part of the Eurasian Economic Union’s common customs territory and that the project’s implementation mechanisms need to be examined comprehensively.