Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey

Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project reviving the
historic Silk Road

Sunday , 23 September 2007

* ‘Iron Silk Road’ becoming a reality

* Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project reviving the
historic Silk Road continues nonstop as 14 companies
submit bids for the construction of the Turkish part
of the strategic railway

By FULYA ÖZERKAN (Turkish Daily News)

ANKARA – Turkey on Thursday took the first step for
the construction of a strategic railway line linking
it to Central Asia, increasing hope for a much better
economic and political integration with that part of
the world, except for Armenia.

Fourteen companies have submitted bids to participate
in the construction of the 76-kilometer long Turkish
part of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway. Turkey put
aside YTL 380 million from its budget for the
258-kilometer project that will hook up its rail
network with that of Georgia and energy-rich
Azerbaijan.

Experts, contacted by the Turkish Daily News, praised
the railway project reviving the historic `Iron Silk
Road’ and said it clearly indicated the willingness of
Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia to realize the
long-awaited project despite obstacles.

`Turkey was in need of an alternative road to be tied
with former Soviet Republics,’ said Hasan Kanbolat of
the Ankara-based Center for Eurasian Strategic Studies
(ASAM). `This railway will pave the way for a direct
connection with the Caucasus, Russia and China.’

The rail project between the eastern Turkish town of
Kars and the Azerbaijani capital of Baku is only a
part of larger regional cooperation that also
encompasses major oil and natural gas pipelines.

`This (Baku-Tbilisi-Kars) is a vital line integrating
the economies of Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia,’ said
Sedat Laçiner, director of the International Strategic
Research Organization (USAK).

He emphasized that the project would make
contributions to the Turkish economy, raising
prospects for direct trade with Central Asian
countries including energy-rich Kazakhstan, as well as
having a strong political impact in the region.

* Armenia isolated; region is integrated

Armenia opposes the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project
bypassing its territory. Both Yerevan and the Armenian
Diaspora in the United States were up in arms, arguing
that there is already a railway passing through
Armenia that could be used to build a trans-Caucasus
railroad.

`Armenia is isolating itself, whereas the other
countries in the region are getting integrated. This
isolation caused by the policies Yerevan has so far
pursued and will get even deeper in the future,’ said
Laçiner.

Turkey closed its borders and severed diplomatic ties
with Armenia in the last decade after Armenian troops
invaded Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian enclave in
Azerbaijan.

`The settlement of the border dispute with Yerevan and
the activation of the existing railway line passing
through Armenia will not become a setback for Turkey,’
said Laçiner, when asked whether Ankara would have
wasted its money on the `Iron Silk Road’ in the event
that the railroad with Armenia reopens.

`To the contrary, this would be an asset for Ankara,’
he added.

European Union candidate Turkey sees infrastructure
projects as boosting its role as a bridge for trade
and energy between the East and the West.

23 September 2007

By FULYA ÖZERKAN