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ABOUT RESTORATION OF TRANS-CAUCASIAN RAILWAY
The Messenger
Dec 4 2012
Georgia
During the Soviet Union, there were two railway lines connecting
Russia with the S. Caucasus. One ran through Azerbaijan and the
other through Georgia along the Black Sea coast and finally ending
up in Armenia. In fact this railway entailed almost the entire South
Caucasus. But in the 1990s, both routes were closed down because of
the hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan and inside Georgia due
to the Russian-inspired conflict in the separatist oriented Abkhazia.
For more than 20 years these lines have been cut. Armenia in
particular is in desperate need of restoration of the railway links
with Russia. These two countries are strategic partners, but there is
no land connection between two countries. Only direct communication
can be established by air, but even this is problematic, because it
makes transportation of goods very expensive and there is always threat
that the countries around Armenia could block and close the air-space
for such flights. Armenia so far is exercising only one route of
land connection with Russia and this is automobile transport through
Georgia. But the railway connection is discussed by people from time
to time. One thing is the rehabilitation of the existing railways
along the Black Sea coast, passing Abkhazian territory and coming
into Georgia's mainland and further to Armenia. There are new ways
possible of constructing a trans-Caucasian railway, directly passing
from Russia into Georgia, though it is a very expensive project which
will need much financial expenditure and technical efforts.
The Messenger
Dec 4 2012
Georgia
During the Soviet Union, there were two railway lines connecting
Russia with the S. Caucasus. One ran through Azerbaijan and the
other through Georgia along the Black Sea coast and finally ending
up in Armenia. In fact this railway entailed almost the entire South
Caucasus. But in the 1990s, both routes were closed down because of
the hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan and inside Georgia due
to the Russian-inspired conflict in the separatist oriented Abkhazia.
For more than 20 years these lines have been cut. Armenia in
particular is in desperate need of restoration of the railway links
with Russia. These two countries are strategic partners, but there is
no land connection between two countries. Only direct communication
can be established by air, but even this is problematic, because it
makes transportation of goods very expensive and there is always threat
that the countries around Armenia could block and close the air-space
for such flights. Armenia so far is exercising only one route of
land connection with Russia and this is automobile transport through
Georgia. But the railway connection is discussed by people from time
to time. One thing is the rehabilitation of the existing railways
along the Black Sea coast, passing Abkhazian territory and coming
into Georgia's mainland and further to Armenia. There are new ways
possible of constructing a trans-Caucasian railway, directly passing
from Russia into Georgia, though it is a very expensive project which
will need much financial expenditure and technical efforts.