Money should not be an issue: Kos on TRIPP mechanisms

The EU is holding discussions on the TRIPP project with the Armenian, American, Azerbaijani and Turkish sides. Responding to a question from “Radiolur,” EU Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos shared exclusive details.

In response to the question of whether the EU is ready to support transport communication both politically and technically in terms of logistics and security standards, the senior EU official said:

“The 42-kilometer road section is an agreement between the United States and your country. We are also holding discussions with the American side, emphasizing broader arrangements for communication. We are talking about the route from Central Asia to Europe. It is very important for us that TRIPP be part of the routes going both east and west, and that all of this be done simultaneously.”

Kos detailed that she is expecting from Armenia’s Minister of Transport a list of Armenia’s priorities, to which the EU will add its own ideas. Discussions are also being held with Turkey and Azerbaijan. In this regard, the involvement of the United States is of much greater importance than simply building 42 kilometers of railway.

“My proposal was to create a platform for cooperation among all countries for governments, international financial institutions and also private business. We need all of them; it is impossible for the EU to finance everything. Then we need financiers: the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, the EBRD, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. We do not build railways; it is the private business that does that. First we identify the priorities and on that basis we implement the overall project,” Kos emphasized.

The TRIPP project will be implemented step by step; an example of this has already been discussed. According to the Commissioner for Enlargement, if, for example, there is a road or railway that crosses the border but there is no functioning border crossing point, it means that funding must be directed to that border crossing point.

In other words, the connectivity agenda is only now taking shape. Kos noted that there have been ministerial meetings in Luxembourg and also in Tashkent, and there are good results.

“I would say that money should not be a problem. Why? Because when I was talking to businessmen, they saw the development of these ties in four areas: transport, energy, trade and digitalization. This is a new opportunity for them as well. One of the transport routes, for example, goes from your country or from Baku to Georgia. Georgia is also part of this agenda, even if we are not negotiating with them… Coordination is very, very important and difficult, many countries, different interests, different funds coming from different sectors but I am glad that I am coordinating this part,” Kos emphasized.