THE BASIS FOR JUST ANOTHER GEOPOLITICAL MYTH ARE LAID
PanARMENIAN.Net
01.12.2007 GMT+04:00
No politicized, economically unprofitable transport projects will
ever provide peace and stability in the Caucasus.
On November 21 with the assistance of the Presidents of Azerbaijan,
Turkey and Georgia the official ceremony of the beginning of
Baku-Tbilisi-Akhalkalaki-Kars railroad construction was held. The
railroad will directly connect the Caucasus with Europe. According to
the experts’ forecast, the construction of the new railroad connecting
Azerbaijan and Georgia with Turkey will be completed by the year of
2009. As the newspaper "Zerkalo" writes in this regard, one of the
aims of the construction of this railroad though the pro-Russian
regions of Georgia is the extrusion of Russia from here.
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ In this case the "pro-Russian region" is Javakh
and the main purpose is the extrusion of the Armenian population. In
this project Georgia almost followed the Turkic world, playing a
rather improper role in the isolation of the Christian neighbor,
at the same time it should be mentioned that Tbilisi has no benefits
from this railroad.
In the opinion of the analyst of Strategic Culture Foundation
Andrei Areshev, over the last years the doubts about the economic
advisability of the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railroad construction
haven’t disappeared yet, and they have been expressed not only in
Russia or in Armenia, but also in Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey
as immediate participants of the project. According to him, the
expenses of the construction of the railroad will be repaid only in
several decades. Assessing the Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railroad
project in June 2006, the Georgian State Minister on economic reforms
Kakha Bendukidze announced that he doesn’t see any guarantees for
a feasible income. "The project of Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku
railroad construction doesn’t have any economic bases, since there is
already one similar railroad; Kars-Gyumri railroad," said the Turkish
Co-chairs of the Armenian-Turkish business-council Khaan Soyak.
In the opinion of the political scientist Levon Melik-Shahnazaryan,
Georgia didn’t have the moral right to participate in it. "For
realizing Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railroad construction
Azerbaijan granted Georgia credit with the sum of $225 million,
which may not be called otherwise than bribe," he thinks. There
are different opinions existing among the Georgian experts regarding
Georgia’s benefit from the realization of Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku
railroad. The already functioning pipelines Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan and
Baky-Tbilisi-Erzrum brought only $50 million to Georgia, while Georgia
was hoping for $300 million.
According to the economist Gi Khukhashvili, Kars-Tbilisi-Baku is the
least profitable to the very Georgia, it particular it may do great
harm to the ports Batumi and Poti, which are used to transport the
Azeri and Turkish goods now. However, Michael Saakashvili is proud
of the asset of his country in the realization of this project. If
this is how the "independence" is perceived in Georgia, we have no
questions for the Georgian authorities, moreover when this project
is supported neither by the USA nor the EU. According to the EU
commissioner for foreign relations and issues of European policy
of neighborhood Benita Ferrero-Valdner, the EU supports the already
existing international transport communications and is against the
establishment of new ones, such as Kars-Akhalkalak-Baku. "In the
conclusion of the European Commission High Level Group it is said
that the TRACECA (the Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia) is
the main international way for the Caucasus, which connected all the
countries, including Armenia. The Commission doesn’t change its mind
and continues assisting the regional cooperation within the frames of
the European Neighborhood Policy by means of dialogue. The Commission
has also started negotiations with the neighboring countries for
the realization of the main international transport corridors,
mentioned in the report of the High Level Group. In the Caucasus
countries the negotiations are concentrated on normal functioning
of the TRACECA. The financial aid from the EU is allocated by in
the frames of the TRACECA and won’t be spent on any other project
connected with Kars-Akhalkalaki-Baku. The Commission disseminates
similar information in the region and various financial institutions
functioning in the region, such as the European Bank for Reconstruction
and Development (EBRD) and the European Investment Bank," emphasizes
the EU Commissioner.
"Kars-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railroad is nothing but a geopolitical
myth. Armenia has nothing to do with this project and even if 6 similar
railroads ever function, it will never have any influence on us.
Those $600 million, which will be spent on the construction, could
be spent on more viable projects," believes the Armenian expert
Sergey Minasyan.
Andrei Areshev is sure that no politicized, economically unprofitable
transport projects will ever provide peace and stability in the
Caucasus. "Here the alternative could be the initiative of Russia;
the proposal of mutually beneficial schemes of new transport
communication. In case of deblocking, with Russia’s assistance,
the railroad communication between Armenia and Turkey is a properly
functioning route, connecting Russia, Turkey and Iran, which would
stimulate trade and economic development of all countries of the
region in the frames of transport corridor "North-South", emphasizes
the analyst.