The Russian Foreign Ministry pointed out the problems of implementing the "Trump route" due to the war in Iran.

The prospects for the implementation of the Trump's Route for International Peace and Prosperity project against the backdrop of the war between the United States and Iran are "not cloudless." This was announced on May 12 by Mikhail Kalugin, Director of the Fourth CIS Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

"A number of experts believe that against the background of the Iranian-American conflict, the prospects for launching the Trump Road are not cloudless," he said in an interview with TASS.

Kalugin called Iran's negative attitude to the presence of Americans near its northern borders the first problem of the initiative's implementation. In addition, US control over the route from Central Asia to Europe may cause distrust among Asian partners, he noted.

"It will be extremely difficult to recoup investments in the project without Chinese and Russian cargo," the diplomat explained.

He also listed "objective" obstacles: the presence of Russian border guards on the Armenian-Iranian border, the need to lay a Russian track to connect with the Azerbaijani one, the concession of the South Caucasus Railway (SCR) until 2038, and Armenia's membership in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

Kalugin recalled that the project itself did not arise from scratch. It was preceded by the work of the trilateral group under the Deputy Prime Ministers of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia. By 2023, the parties had almost launched the so-called Meghri route.

"The problem is that the Armenian-American initiative, unlike the Meghri Route, does not automatically provide for a full-fledged connection of the Armenian and Azerbaijani railway infrastructure. It is not our fault that Yerevan deliberately froze the work of the trilateral working group in 2023," the diplomat stressed.

Transport tie: Russia insists on participating in the "Trump route"

What does Washington offer Yerevan and Baku and what are the main obstacles?

On February 14, the Armenian Foreign Ministry announced that the republic would provide the United States with a 74% stake in the joint Armenian-American venture "Trump's Route to International Peace and Prosperity" (TRIPP Development Company). It was noted that the initial period of cooperation will last 49 years.

Armenia expects that the route will become the basis for the development of cooperation between Yerevan and Washington in the field of infrastructure, economic development and regional integration, the Foreign Ministry added.