ArmInfo.Accumulations of cars on the border of Russia and Georgia from Upper Lars are exclusively a technical problem, and are not the result of inaction of the Armenian or Russian authorities. This was in the course of the business forum on economic development of the border regions of Armenia organized by the Union of Armenians of Russia in Moscow, Minister of Territorial Administration and Development Suren Papikyan said.
Thousands of vehicles, the minister said, now cross the Armenian-Georgian, and then the Georgian-Russian border, which is the main cause of serious congestion.
As the correspondent of ArmInfo informs, Papikyan assured that the relevant departments of Armenia are engaged in the settlement of this problem hourly and daily. The Minister also expressed his gratitude to the Russian side for assistance in timely delivery of the Armenian harvest to the Russian market.
The minister called the absence of a direct rail link between Armenia and Russia the main obstacle to more effective economic interaction, while assuring at the same time that Armenia is currently negotiating with partners from Russia and Georgia: "I am full of hope that in the foreseeable future we will find a compromise solution . Preliminary arrangements are already available.
Touching upon the issues of selling agricultural products, the minister assured that this year in the conditions of high apricot yield, there were no problems with the sale of the villagers, moreover, apricots are successfully sold on foreign markets.
To note, the delegation led by the Minister of Territorial Administration and Development of the Republic of Armenia Suren Papikyan on July 7 paid a two-day visit to Moscow to participate in the business forum on economic development of the border settlements of Armenia, organized by the Union of Armenians of Russia. Immediately after the forum, the Armenian delegation visited the multi-national holiday "Apricot", annually held by the Union of Armenians of Russia. This year the mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin visited the festival. It should be recalled that the former military-Georgian road through Verkhny Lars checkpoint since the beginning of the 1990s was the only ground route providing Armenia's connection with Russia. The need to create an alternative road has been said for a long time. As an alternative, requiring a political solution for the countries of the region, there are ways that link Georgia and Russia through the conflict zones - South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Representatives of Russia and Georgia on May 24 in Prague reached an agreement that for the customs control of goods on the territory of Abkhazia and South Ossetia a tripartite commission will be formed, which will include representatives of Georgia, Russia and the Swiss company SGS. Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan wrote about this on his Facebook page. "In case of implementation of the agreement, we will have alternative ways of transporting goods in cases when the road through" Upper Lars "will be closed," Avinyan said. He also noted that the conversation on this topic was still on May 14 at the meeting of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi. As ArmInfo reported earlier, on December 22, 2017, the Georgian Foreign Ministry signed a contract with the Swiss company SGS, which will monitor cargo transportation between Russia, Georgia and Armenia through Abkhazia and South Ossetia. According to the document, alternative military-Georgian road transport corridors can be used under force majeure circumstances. When exactly new corridors will work, it is not clear yet.