ENVOY HIGHLIGHTS STRATEGIC IMPORTANCE OF IRAN-ARMENIA RAILWAY

Fars News Agency
June 3 2009
Iran

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Iran-Armenia railway is a project of great strategic
importance not only for the two states but also for the whole region,
Iran’s ambassador to Yerevan said.

Iranian Ambassador to Armenia Seyed Ali Saqqaiyan told Armenpress
news agency on Tuesday that the railway can be considered a very
convenient direction for cargo transportation.

The Iranian technical-expert group has lately visited Armenia to
study in what direction the railway must be constructed, he added.

"Besides that we expect the investors to display interest in
the project and Russia seems to be keen on participating in the
implementation of the project," the Ambassador noted.

Seyed Ali Saqqaiyan reiterated that the political decision for the
construction of the railway has already been made – during the Armenian
President Serzh Sargsyan’s visit to Iran an agreement was reached
and at present the discussion of technical issues is being conducted.

Experts and specialist are now discussing different options for the
direction of the railway.

According to early estimates, $2 billion of investment is needed for
the construction of the Iran-Armenia railway.

The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank have already voiced
interest in the railway construction project.