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Armenia: Yerevan Seeks Easy Trade Route Via Georgia

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  • Armenia: Yerevan Seeks Easy Trade Route Via Georgia

    ARMENIA: YEREVAN SEEKS EASY TRADE ROUTE VIA GEORGIA

    http://www.eurasianet.org
    June 8, 2009

    Armenia's Foreign Minister, Edward Nalbandian, had a meeting with his
    Georgian counterpart, Grigol Vashadze, in Tbilisi to discuss trade
    and economic relations. The key topic on the agenda was the transit
    of Armenian exports and imports via Georgia.

    "It's cheaper to deliver goods [to Armenia] via any country than via
    [the Georgian port of] Poti to Yerevan," said Nalbandian. "We also
    discussed the checkpoint in Lars [on the Georgian-Russian] border. I'm
    sure negotiations will resolve these issues."

    The closest land routes to and from Armenia run through Georgia - via
    the Black Sea ports of Poti and Batumi and via the border checkpoint of
    Kazbegi-Verkhny Lars on the Georgian-Russian border. The checkpoint was
    closed down by Russia in 2006 following a freeze in relations between
    Moscow and Tbilisi. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

    Russia reportedly reconstructed the checkpoint and is ready to reopen
    it. Notably, according to Vashadze, Moscow notified Yerevan about
    the possible reopening before it notified Tbilisi. In a separate
    statement, Vashadze said that Georgia is ready to negotiate the
    re-opening with Russia. "After the Russian Federation, via the Swiss
    Embassy, suggested that we start the negotiations, and we agreed, we
    are expecting developments, but nothing has happened yet," Vashadze
    was quoted by the Russian news agency Regnum on June 8.

    Yerevan is reportedly actively lobbying for the opening of
    the checkpoint. Other routes to Russia are longer and more
    expensive. Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili is expected to
    visit Armenia on June 24-25. Trade and transit are expected to feature
    prominently on his visit's agenda.
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