Kars-Akhalkalaki railway gains added diplomatic symbolism

Monday, August 15, 2005, #151 (0925)
The Messenger
By M. Alkhazashvili

The possible construction of the Karsi-Akhalkalaki-Tbilisi-Baku railway is only on the drawing board but is still a major diplomatic issue for the countries with the most to gain - and lose - as a result of the project.
[...]
[...] Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan Elmar Mammadyarov has touted the project to both U.S. and German officials [...].

The 90 km long railway which is estimated to cost anywhere from USD 400 million to USD 800 million would connect the Turkish city of Kars and the Georgian city of Akhalkalaki. [...] the three partner countries - Georgia, Turkey and Azerbaijan - are scheduled to meet in Turkey later this month to further discuss the project.

While Azerbaijan has praised the project, Armenia has expressed concern that the railway would basically cut off Armenia from the lucrative east-west transit rout. [...].
[...]
A major argument for the Armenian side is the existence of railway from Kars to the Armenian city of Gyumri. This once was the artery connecting Turkey to the rest of the South Caucasus rail network, but had not been in operation for nearly 15 years because of the Karabakh conflict. The revival of this line is still not discussed and mainly depends on the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in a way that satisfies both Armenia and Azerbaijan.

In addition to Armenia, Russia also is not very happy about the project [...]. But so far the most active detractor to the project is the Armenian lobby in the U.S. Congress.

[...]. To this end they have submitted the bill titled South Caucasus Integration and Open Railroads Act of 2005.

The stated goal of the bill (H.R. 3361) is "To prohibit United States assistance to develop or promote any rail connections or railway-related connections that traverse or connect Baku, Azerbaijan; Tbilisi, Georgia; and Kars, Turkey, and that specifically exclude cities in Armenia."
[...]
If successful, the bill would be a major blow to the financing of the railway as neither Georgia or Azerbaijan could afford it on their own. [...].

[...] it is believed that Ankara would take on the bulk of responsibility for financing. [...].

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.