Monday, February 12 2018 13:40

ArmInfo. The restoration of direct rail service between Armenia and Russia through the territory of Abkhazia and Georgia meets the economic interests of Yerevan and Moscow. This was stated by the Armenian Ambassador to Russia Vardan Toganian in the press center of the Parliamentary Newspaper. According to him, the project could also strengthen political ties between the countries, although bilateral relations are still at the highest level. As the diplomat noted, Moscow and Yerevan show the whole world an example of good-neighborly relations, on the agenda of which there are no global problems. "They are not only in the political arena, but also in real life - about one and a half million Armenians living and working in Russia, only a small confirmation. "We must at least maintain such relations, take into account our historical experience and modern realities. It is worthwhile to step up military-political, economic, cultural partnership, "the diplomat emphasized, while he stressed that Russia and Armenia still lacked cooperation and production projects." There is cooperation at the level of natural monopolies in the field of gas and energy. But we need projects, for example, in the field of agriculture. This could involve our colleagues from Kazakhstan and Belarus. I am sure that the railway coming from Russia can also work for the interests of the Central Asian countries - a single Armenia can not be the beneficiary of this economic project. However, such plans would strengthen the political component of our relations, and I wholeheartedly support this idea, "the ambassador said. In turn, First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee for Control and Rules Oleg Nilov proposed to begin the process with the restoration of the railway communication between Russia and Armenia. "This could be in demand both in passenger transportations and in freight transport, including rail transportation of timber and lumber, agricultural products, especially as this way gives us access to the huge market of Iran," the deputy explained, stressing that the road , of course, must pass through the territory of Abkhazia and Georgia. "Given that Armenia and Georgia have normal relations, the implementation of the project largely depends on the diplomatic efforts of Tbilisi and Yerevan, it is very important that the railway does not cause fears of the Georgian side," noted Nilov, noting that the Russian trains to Kaliningrad have long been going through Lithuania - and this despite the difficult relations with the Baltic state. <The trains run without stops, the cars are sealed. The same scheme can also be used here, "the parliamentarian said. He is convinced that any investments in this project will pay off fairly quickly. The trade representative of Armenia in Russia Karen Asoyan said that more than 270 agreements on cooperation have been concluded between the countries. "Last year our trade turnover amounted to 1.7 billion dollars, while the export of goods from Armenia to Russia grew by more than 44 percent," he said, adding that this was largely due to the country's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union and the implementation of a set of programs , developed by the Armenian government. As Mikhail Sheremet, a member of the State Duma Energy Committee, said, the cooperation in the energy sphere is also actively continuing - about 80 percent of the necessary energy resources the country receives from Russia. According to him, several facilities of the republic's fuel and energy complex are owned by Russian companies. "And in 2014, the Armenian government approved the proposal to extend the design lifetime of Metsamor NPP - the work on its modernization is carried out by Rosatom corporation," he recalled. In his turn, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs Vladimir Jabarov considered important Armenia's actions in relation to Russia at international venues, noted. "Armenia has never voted for decisions that could cause reputational damage to Russia in the world arena. In particular, the Armenian delegation has never supported the anti-Russian resolutions of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, "the senator said.