Georgia will carry out one-time free of charge shipment of fuel from Azerbaijan to Armenia, Georgia’s Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development stated on December 8.
“On 5 December, the Georgian government received a request from partner countries for a one-time transit shipment of fuel from Azerbaijan to Armenia through Georgian territory. By decision of Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, Georgian Railways was immediately instructed to carry out this one-time rail transport free of charge,” the ministry said in a statement. The ministry stressed that Tbilisi remains a strategic and reliable partner for both Armenia and Azerbaijan, adding that it supports peace and cooperation in the region.
The ministry’s statement comes after an Azerbaijani pro-government media outlet accused Tbilisi of debliberately obstructing Azerbaijani truck at the border as well as imposing high railway transit tariffs on Azerbaijani fuel bound to Armenia. The website said Tbilisi is “testing Baku’s patience”. Azerbaijan relies on Georgia’s railway to send fuel to Armenia as it currently lacks this infrastructure.
Azerbijani Presidential aide Hikmat Hajiyev said at the 23rd Doha Forum in Qatar's capital Doha on Saturday that Baku was considering sending oil and oil products to Armenia via Georgia. Hajiyev and Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan met in Doha to discuss peace process between the two countries. During the panel session both officials highlighted the measures undertake to implement the peace declaration signed in the White House in August to end the nearly forty-year-conflict in the South Caucasus. Grigoryan stressed the work of the two countries’ civil societies to establish peace between the two nations. In turn, Hajiyev spoke about unblocking regional transport communications, including the International Route for Peace and Prosperity, TRIPP road, that will connect Azerbaijan proper to its Nakhchivan exclave. Grigoryan stressed that the TRIPP will open up great opportunities not only for the region but also for businesses and countries outside the region.
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