
ArmInfo.Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan referred to the question from opposition MP Garnik Danielyan about whether he had raised the issue of Armenian truck drivers facing illegal monetary extortion at the Armenian-Georgian border during his meeting with the Georgian Prime Minister as "provocative."
On March 4, during a government hour in parliament, Pashinyan stated that all bilateral issues had been discussed during his working visit to Georgia. However, he tried to limit the discussion to generalities.
"We came to specific conclusions and reached specific agreements on all issues," he noted. In response, Garnik Danielyan asked for clarification on whether Pashinyan had specifically raised the issue of truck drivers being forced to pay bribes at the border, otherwise they risk being stuck there for months. Pashinyan stated that if Danielyan knew about the problem but hadn't yet contacted law enforcement, then his question was merely provocative. "I believe that with your provocations, you want to create problems so that you can then talk about them here. Then, make new provocations and talk about them," Nikol Pashinyan stated.
It's worth noting that Armenian truck drivers have been reporting various problems crossing the border from the Georgian side since last year. It was previously reported that Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan contacted law enforcement following complaints from truck drivers about bribes when crossing the Georgian-Armenian border.