YEREVAN. - President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Kvirikashvili on Friday visited the site of the future Friendship Bridge which is to cross Debed river, Armenian News – NEWS.am correspondent reports.

The construction agreements are scheduled to be signed in the first quarter of 2017, while the bridge will be commissioned in summer or fall 2018.

In his speech, Minister of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies of Armenia, Vahan Martirosyan, underscored the importance of developing transportation links between Armenia, Georgia and Iran. The new bridge will replace the old one built back in the 1960s. It will have a capacity to bear the current cargo traffic and attract transit cargo. The financial sources of the project include the loan taken out by the Armenian Government, as well as the co-funding of the Armenian and Georgian governments.

For his part, Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, Genadi Arveladze, stated that the republic is ready to modernize its road network to provide a wide and convenient transportation corridor both from west to east, and from north to south.  

The Minister and Deputy Minister also noted the significance of the project as a symbol of the long-lasting friendship of the two neighboring countries and peoples.

The agreement on the bridge construction, signed by the Armenian and Georgian governments, entered into force in June 2015. The bridge will be built by means of the 10.3 mln euro loan provided by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Tender for choosing a contractor and technical controller has already been announced. It is carried out through the efforts of the Armenian and Georgian governments in cooperation with EBRD.