🔗 Share this article

A deserted terminal, a few rusted carriages and a dozen metres of track are all that remains of former Soviet railroad in southern Armenia.

While appearing improbable, this derelict stretch of railway in the Caucasus region has been selected to transform into an emblem of diplomatic peace by America's leader, known as the Tripp initiative for International Peace and Prosperity.

Scattered around are fragments of a head from a memorial to a communist hero. A female statue has lost one limb.

"We stand upon the Trump route, also known as Crossroads of Peace, the Silk Road, and the Zangezur Corridor," notes a local journalist. "However currently none of this looks American."

Regional Conflict Resolution

This represents a longstanding conflict Trump claims to have brought to an end, through an agreement between Armenia and its historical rival Azerbaijan.

The plan envisages US companies moving in under a 99-year deal to construct the 26-mile corridor through Armenian territory along the complete frontier with Iran, creating a passageway linking Azerbaijan to its separated territory of Nakhchivan.

Rail transport, highway and energy conduits have all been pledged and Trump has spoken of corporations investing "a lot of money, that will financially advantage all three of our nations".

On the ground, the magnitude of the undertaking is clear. This transport link must be constructed completely new, but political hurdles far outweigh economic issues.

International Consequences

The American involvement might transform the geopolitics of an area that Moscow considers as its sphere of influence. Conservative factions in Iran express concern and are threatening to block the project.

This peace initiative plays a crucial role in resolving longstanding tensions between the two neighboring nations that started over Nagorno-Karabakh, a part of Azerbaijan historically populated by.

In 2023, Azerbaijan recaptured the contested area, and nearly all ethnic Armenians fled their homes. This was not the initial displacement in this conflict: during the 1990s over 500,000 Azerbaijanis became refugees.

Global Participants

US mediation were enabled because of Russia's weakened position in the South Caucasus.

For years, the Kremlin worked towards restoring the passage that currently carries US presidential designation.

Although Russia's proposal for Russian security forces to guard the future road was declined, Russian units continue monitoring the section of the Armenian-Iranian frontier that has been chosen for the peace corridor.

Armenia's Syunik region represents an important center for international trade, and commercial vehicles and traders from Iran commonly appear. Iranian construction companies are constructing a new bridge that will cross the planned corridor.

This border waterway that divides Iranian and Armenian territory represents the exact path the corridor will traverse.

Remains uncertain the manner in which American and Persian corporations can operate together in Armenia, given recent US involvement in the Israel‑Iran war.

International Collaboration

Additionally exists growing Western involvement in Armenia's southern territories.

French authorities initiated military equipment transfers to Yerevan and established a consulate in Syunik. European Union observers is deployed to this area, and the future Trump route European officials view as component of an alternative route connecting Europe to Central Asia and China and bypassing Russia.

Turkey is also eager to benefit from opportunities arising from waning Russian influence.

Ankara is in talks with Armenia to establish diplomatic ties and expressed endorsement for the peace initiative, which would establish immediate connectivity from Turkish territory to Azerbaijan through the separated region.

Yerevan's administration shows composure about the various competing interests. Authorities aspire for a "Crossroads of Peace" where every neighboring nation can collaborate.

"They say conditions will improve and that we can expect billions of euros, new roads and trade with Iran, America, Europe, Turkey and Azerbaijan," the journalist comments with an incredulous smile.

An official settlement between Azerbaijan and Armenia remains unsigned, but one thing is clear: since the Washington meeting, not a single shot has occurred on their shared frontier.

Trump's intervention has provided some immediate respite to residents who long have lived in fear of resumed hostilities.