Russian-azeri Transport Cooperation

[Siamanto]

Russian-Azeri transport cooperation against Armenian "interests" - agency

 

Mediamax news agency, Yerevan

21 Feb 05

 

Armenia's attempts to achieve changes in Russia's regional transport

policy have failed, the Armenian news agency Mediamax has suggested.

In its weekly analytical review, the news agency cast doubt on Russian

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's promises during his recent visit to

Yerevan "to take into account Armenia's interests" as Moscow will

unlikely quit the "promising" railway project linking Russia to Iran

via Azerbaijan. Indifference to Armenian transport "interests" in the

region does not mean that Russia will give up an idea of purchasing

Armenian energy facilities "to form a chain", Mediamax added. The

following is an excerpt from report in English by Armenian news agency

Mediamax; subheadings have been inserted editorially:

 

The visit of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to Yerevan last

week left double impression. If we speak about the political component

of the visit, the participants of the talks did not say anything new

having described the Armenian-Russian relations as "partnership and

alliance".

 

As to the settlement of the Nagornyy Artsax conflict, in this case

Sergey Lavrov also did not go beyond stating official Moscow's

position: "The solution of the problem should be found by Armenia and

Azerbaijan, Russia is ready to become a guarantor for the fulfillment

of the agreements." The Russian and Armenian foreign ministers also

spoke about "practically full coincidence of positions" on the issues

of reforming the UN and the OSCE.

 

This could form an impression that the visit of the Russian foreign

minister to Armenia went off rather smoothly, especially in the light

of the scandal which burst out in Tbilisi in connection with Lavrov's

refusal to visit in Tbilisi the memorial of the victims who died for

the restoration of Georgia's territorial integrity during the

conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

 

Lavrov's diplomatic gestures

 

By the way, in this concern a question arose among several Armenia

media as to what prevented Lavrov from showing such "delicacy" and

refusing to visit the "Martyrs Avenue" in Azerbaijan where the people,

who have taken part in the anti-Armenian pogroms in Baku in 1990 and

killed as a result of the belated interference of the Soviet troops

into the conflict, were buried? When Lavrov was directly asked about

his attitude to those events in Baku, he behaved as a true diplomat

and not only avoided the answer but also used it to once more

indirectly mention about a complication in Russia's relations with the

Baltic countries on the eve of celebrating the 60th anniversary of the

victory over Fascism.

 

This is Lavrov's answer: "This question has long ago been answered

partly by the historians, though historical research and discussions

still continue. The emotions should not overshadow the necessity to

live together, to solve urgent problems. Any attempt to heat up

emotions around the historical facts, which has long ago been defined

in the relations between the states, only take us away from this. It

is not by accident that today talks are proceeding on the necessity

for the states to once more review their history, including the

history of the World War II. I regard such attempts to rewrite the

history as a desire not to allow the normal mutually beneficial

development of cooperation, partnership, which would be open for all

the European states. I prefer concentrating on topical problems. There

are a lot of them, I repeat. Life is actively going on: globalization,

mutual dependence. We have concrete affairs. Let's leave all this to

the historians."

 

However, today the point is not why the Russian leaders consider it

possible to honour the memory of the participants of anti-Armenian

pogroms and fear to visit the memorial of the Georgian victims in

Tbilisi. We would like to attach special attention to the report on

Sergey Lavrov's meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Andranik

Markaryan, during which the latter did not hesitate to be a fly in the

ointment.

 

Lavrov pledges to take Armenian transport interests into account

 

The Armenian prime minister openly stated Yerevan's concern about the

planned construction of the Qazvin-Rasht [iran]-Astara [Azerbaijan]

railway bypassing Armenia within the framework of the North-South

international transport corridor.

 

[Passage omitted: background details]

 

In reply, Sergey Lavrov said that during the implementation of

regional transport projects Russia would take into account Armenia's

interests and would not take steps that could harm them. He also

promised to inform Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin and the

head of the Russian Railways company, Gennadiy Fadeyev, about the

Armenian prime minister's concern. Most likely, this can be understood

as follows: Russia takes Armenia's concern with understanding but it

will not refuse taking part in the promising project.

 

[Passage omitted: reported details]

 

During his recent visit to Tehran, Armenian National Security Council

Secretary [and Defence Minister] Serzh Sarkisyan discussed the

prospects for the construction of the Iran-Armenia railway. Last

December, having met the Iranian ambassador in Yerevan, Serzh

Sarkisyan described the idea of the construction of the railway as

"brilliant" and noted that if the implementation of the project became

possible, it would have major importance for Armenia. To all

appearances, Russia does not share the optimism of the Armenian

side...[ellipsis as published]

 

Armenia unsuccessful to change situation in its favour

 

The fact that the Armenian side decided to make the media aware of its

discontent with Russia's regional transport policy may testify to the

fact that the attempts to achieve changes in the situation by

diplomatic methods were not successful, and this, of course, cannot

make Yerevan happy.

 

Nevertheless, without showing desire to ease Armenia's transport

problems, Russia does not hide its appetite for Armenian energy. Last

week, the Russian RAO UES company [unified Energy System of Russia]

confirmed that it was holding talks with the Midland Group offshore

company on the purchase of the Armenian power grid.

 

[Passage omitted: background details]

 

We should assume that the head of the Russian RAO UES company,

Anatoliy Chubays, who put forward a scandalous idea of building a

"liberal empire" in 2003, wants to begin its implementation precisely

in Armenia. The interest towards the power grids, besides political

implication, has evident economic implication as well. Chubays has

repeatedly stated that Armenia was a leader among CIS countries for

the level of collection of payments for the consumed electricity.

Taking into account the fact that Armenia's main power facilities are

already controlled by the RAO UES company, the possible purchase of

the power grids will allow to "form a chain" providing maximum

business efficiency.

 

The Midland Group company cannot sell the shares it possesses without

the Armenian government's consent. If the RAO UES Company is really

interested in the purchase, it is very unlikely that Yerevan will

refuse. If this happens amid Russia's indifference to Armenia's

interests in the region, future protests by Armenia will be at least

strange as official Yerevan's decision will formally be considered

voluntary.

 

 

http://groong.usc.edu/news/msg103524.html