During a meeting hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on August 8, the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the United States signed a joint declaration that, among other provisions, establishes a U.S. role in overseeing a transit route through Armenia, which Azerbaijan has demanded as a link to its Nakhichevan exclave.
The Washington accords received broad international support, including endorsements from Western and regional leaders. However, both Russia and Iran immediately voiced concern over U.S. involvement in the proposed project.
Armenia and Azerbaijan also initialed a peace agreement between their two countries aimed at ending more than three decades of conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region and along their shared borders.
“I think the agreement and declaration contain quite tangible benefits for Iran and for Russia as well,” Pashinian said in an interview with Fox News recorded last week. “Because in case and when this agreement is implemented, for example, Iran will have access to railway from the Persian Gulf to the Black Sea, and Russia and Iran will have an opportunity to have a railway connection between the two countries.”
Pashinian noted that Türkiye is another country that stands to benefit from the agreements, which he said align with his government’s regional integration initiative, the “Crossroads of Peace.” He added that the agreements would also contribute to international stability and security.
“This agreement can really be a kind of crossroads of cooperation, a crossroads of peace. And that is our goal,” Pashinian said.
“We don’t want to provoke arguments. We don’t want to trigger tensions. Our goal is to have stability, peace, sustainable development, economic and political cooperation. And I think yesterday’s [August 8] declaration is a very important and very convenient platform for that,” he added.
On Monday, Pashinian held phone calls with the presidents of Iran and Russia, Masoud Pezeshkian and Vladimir Putin, to inform them of the outcomes of the Washington meetings. He reportedly assured both leaders that regional communication channels will operate under the principles of territorial integrity, sovereignty, and jurisdiction of countries, and on the basis of reciprocity. According to his press service, during the phone calls the Armenian premier also highlighted opportunities for broader regional cooperation.
Further discussions between the leaders of Armenia and Iran are expected next week when Pezeshkian is due to visit the South Caucasus country.
In his public remarks last Sunday, Pezeshkian acknowledged that Iran’s demand that any road through Armenia sought by Azerbaijan should not jeopardize its border connections had been addressed in the deal announced by the two South Caucasus nations during their U.S.-hosted meeting.
However, he reiterated Tehran’s concern over U.S. involvement in building the road crossing Armenia’s southern Syunik province, which borders the Islamic Republic.
Meanwhile, a diplomat in Russia said earlier this week that Moscow needs to examine the details of the proposed transport corridor through Armenia before making any assessments.
Aleksey Fadeyev, Deputy Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, emphasized on Tuesday that the specifics of the project – named the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity” (TRIPP) in honor of the U.S. leader, have not yet been made public.
