Baku Must Convince Armenia That the Nakhchivan Route Is Beneficial Not Only for Itself, Vladimir Lepyokhin

We have previously stated that if Azerbaijan wants Armenia to engage in dialogue regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh issue, it must propose an economic project that would be beneficial for Armenia. This was noted by Vladimir Lepyokhin, director of the EAEU Institute and co-founder of the Eurasian Expert Club, in an interview with NEWS.am.

Our interlocutor mentioned that at that time, "the ball was in Yerevan's court"; it could consider the possibility of participating in the economic project, and dialogue between the two sides would begin.

In the current situation, when Azerbaijan has resolved some of its problems through military aggression, this transport project is seen by the expert as an act of goodwill. Moreover, the primary beneficiary is Azerbaijan since a significant portion of the route will pass through its territory and be controlled by it.

"The benefits for Armenia are not as evident as they are for Azerbaijan. Armenia has alternative transportation options with Russia, such as through Georgia. There is no urgent need for direct transportation links between Russia and Armenia considering Armenia's not-so-large export potential, which makes it not vitally interested in direct access to the Russian market. Azerbaijan, on the other hand, is keen on having a direct connection with Nakhchivan and correlating with Turkey, which needs to be represented in the southern part of Armenia," the political scientist noted.

Baku must convince the Armenian side that this is not merely an Azerbaijani benefit but genuinely a step towards Armenia as well,” he added.