Armenian premier says talks continue with Russia on railway concession

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said Thursday that negotiations with Russia on the concession management of his country’s railway are ongoing, according to state news agency Armenpress.

Speaking at a media briefing in the capital, Yerevan, Pashinyan said there has been no change in the situation with regard to the topic, and that discussions are continuing.

“This is a very sensitive issue. It is our property, and we should have the ability to manage our property the way we want,” said Pashinyan.

He stated that Armenia has set no deadline for resolving the issue, noting it is calmly discussing the issue in conjunction with other issues, and that Yerevan is working for a resolution “as quickly as possible and in as friendly a manner as possible.”

Armenia’s rail network is operated by South Caucasus Railway, a company owned by Russian Railways, under a 30-year concession agreement signed in 2008.

Armenia argues that the agreement deprives the country of certain competitive advantages, which Moscow has accused the West of “blackmailing” Yerevan on the issue.

Pashinyan said that as part of agreements he reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin during negotiations in the Kyrgyz capital on Aug. 31, Yerevan continues to take stock of its relations with Moscow to “see what layers they consist of.”

He also renewed his country’s position on not objecting to Russia withdrawing its military base in Gyumri in northwestern Armenia if it wants to do so, stating that the base has “no vital significance for Armenia’s security.”

"There has not been a single case when any of our officials raised such an issue or raised such a question with any Russian official. If they decide to withdraw it, we will not object," he added.

On Sept. 2, Putin said the presence of the Russian military base was ultimately a sovereign decision for Armenia."If Armenia believes that the Russian military base is not needed, we will leave as early as tomorrow. We will not impose anything on anyone," he said,

One day later, Pashinyan said Armenia has not raised the issue of withdrawing the base with Russia.