Economists analyze benefits from Zangezur Corridor

The transport corridor connecting Baku with Nakhichevan is beneficial not only for Azerbaijan, it will also improve Armenia's communication with Iran and Russia, the economists interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

The Zangezur Corridor consists of a railway and a motorway; and Azerbaijan has already begun building both transport communications in its territory, Natig Djafarli, an economic expert and the head of the "Respublika" Research Centre, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The expert believes that this corridor is important not only for Azerbaijan, but also for Armenia, as it will provide a railway link of Armenia with Iran and Russia. "It is known that railway transportation is the cheapest and most convenient. This is a mutually beneficial project for Baku and Yerevan. Azerbaijan will receive a road to Nakhichevan and Armenia will receive a link with Iran via Nakhichevan," Me Djafarli has explained.

In his turn, Togrul Djuvarly, an observer on transport and logistics of the "Turan" News Agency, has noted that Armenia is sceptical about this project not only from the political, but also from the economic viewpoint. "There are doubts that the road will bring the expected benefits from transit, and they will outweigh the political risks from the use of this corridor by Turkey. Recently, however, the economic attractiveness of the Zangezur Corridor for Armenia has been increased by the manifestation of Iran's interest in using it for transportations via Nakhichevan and Armenia to the Black Sea coast of Georgia. In this case, Armenia becomes a part of the South-West international corridor. What has been said over the past decade can now become a reality," Mr Djuvarly has noted.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on December 11, 2021 at 07:38 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.