Armenia has rejected a proposal by the United States to lease a transit road passing through the Syunik region, citing concerns over compromising national sovereignty. This was confirmed by MP Arman Yeghoyan, Chair of the Armenian Parliament's Committee on European Integration, in an interview with Factor TV regarding a U.S.-backed regional unblocking initiative.
“The U.S. proposed leasing the road, but we did not accept it, as we saw a threat to our sovereignty,” Yeghoyan told Factor.am.
He said that the Armenian government is open to discussing unblocking regional communications, but only within the framework of sovereignty, jurisdiction, reciprocity, and territorial integrity.
Yeghoyan also addressed claims he attributed to Russian sources that American troops would be stationed along the road or that the U.S. would bring a Turkish company into Armenia.
Recently, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack commented on regional unblocking, suggesting that in the United States, such issues might be resolved by leasing the road for 100 years. This would allow all parties access to the route. However, he added that cultural differences in the South Caucasus make such an approach more difficult to implement.
