Moscow and Tehran have not expressed concern regarding the presence of Americans in the region within the framework of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) project. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan on Wednesday stated this during the international Orbeli Forum being held in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia.

The FM recalled that companies with American presence, as well as numerous companies with other foreign capital—Argentinian, Chinese, and others—operate in Armenia.

Mirzoyan agreed that the TRIPP project attracts considerable political attention. “I don’t want to say that it is comparable to water resources or airport management, [but] it has political significance and is one of the guarantees and tools of peace [between Armenia and Azerbaijan],” he said.

According to him, respective negotiations are currently underway with the American side. “In my view, it should be an Armenian-American company that will build and manage [the project] on a daily basis. This does not mean American control over the infrastructure. All issues related to sovereignty and authority [of Armenia] are resolved and reflected in the signed and published documents. This is only about management,” Mirzoyan emphasized, adding that officially Moscow and Tehran have not expressed concern over this project. On the contrary, Iran and Russia are interested in the project, especially since Russia is the operator of another company in Armenia—the South Caucasus Railway.

Also, the Armenian FM requested that the approved name of the TRIPP project be used.