Azerbaijan - Nakchivan corridor

[steven]

As part of the peace agreement after the 2020 war over Nagorno-Karabakh, it has been agreed that a corridor would be made between Nakchivan and Azerbaijan.

The details are not clear yet. If you know of any news in this regard, please offer your pearls of wisdom below!

We summarize all travel knowledge at the Azerbaijan border crossings page.

There are also forum threads about border crossings between Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

[Koen]

Wondering how they would get a corridor, as Armenia will not give up the access to Iran.
couldn't find anything on the web about how this would be established.

When I was there, you only see the old fortified railway along the border of Armenia.

[steven]

I would agree this idea is fraught with difficulty. The territory would remain Armenian, but Azeri's would be allowed to use a road running through it without passport control, that's how you should see it, I think.

Eurasianet asks some poignant questions https://eurasianet.org/in-karabakh-deal ... as-answers (scroll to the end, there is a map as well).

I imagine it's not for anytime soon, but thinking that someone would sooner or later ask a question about it, I thought I'd beat them to it.

[Koen]

haha always good to beat those people.

This corridor will be a nightmare to have in their country, will see how that will work out.
wonder why it's in the agreement, as Armenia territory there is international recognized.
Probably Azerbaijan had lot's of leverage in the agreement and asked this otherwise they would just take all of Nagorno-Karabakh.

[steven]

Probably Azerbaijan had lot's of leverage in the agreement and asked this otherwise they would just take all of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Armenia had their backs against the wall.

[Milad]

I recently read that Azerbaijan Railways wants to use the agreement to rebuild/reactivate the old railway Zangilan-Meghri-Julfa, which runs right next to the Iranian border both in Azerbaijan and Armenia, used to be a part of the rail line Moscow-Tehran in Soviet times and was closed after the collapse of the Soviet union. There are existing railway lines from Zangilan to Baku and from Julfa to Nakhchivan city. A railway instead of a road would certainly be much easier to control for the FSB and Armenia. The drawback is that a small stretch of the railroad was destroyed to build the Khoda Afarin dam, they'd have to build a way around, and the topography is not easy...

[steven]

Interesting article on the new geopolitics of trade corridors in the region after Armenia's defeat. Wins for Russia, Turkey and China, defeat for Georgia, Iran. - https://armenianweekly.com/2021/01/13/t ... r-armenia/