Economically, among the countries of the region Azerbaijan is least of all interested in launching the Abkhazian railway. Azerbaijan has railway communication with Russia through Derbend. Georgia is also forced to use the same road. If the Abkhazian section is opened, Baku will start losing money for transit. But in this case the political aspect is more important. The Abkhazian railway is vitally important for Armenia. Every year Armenia loses millions of dollars because of the absence of direct railway communication with the outer world. For Yerevan launching of the Transcaucasian road will be a breach of blockade, resulting in a powerful impulse for the development of foreign trade and industry. They clearly realize it in Baku. Nevertheless, Azerbaijan indirectly approves its readiness to become a co-founder of the consortium. No matter how hard the official sources try to deny the fact of participation in Tbilisi meeting, it is certain that Azerbaijan was presented there. However, the representatives of the Ministry of Transport of Azerbaijan did their best to keep the reporters uninformed about the person representing Azerbaijan in the meeting. The visit of officials to Tbilisi was nearly confidential since even the head of the press secretary of the ministry did not know about that.
But the participation of Azerbaijan in negotiations on creating the consortium seems paradoxical only from the first glance. Baku leaders have become convinced that the issue of launching the Abkhazian road will be solved in any case. So, to control the process, it is better to take part in that process just to be able to hinder the process when necessary. Besides, in Baku they realize that the significance of Abkhazian road for Armenia subsides every month because the issue of Poti – Caucasus port ferry crossing is almost solved. In such a situation it would be better for Azerbaijan to try to derive at least some benefit from the inevitable.
There is still another reason for Azerbaijan’s involvement in the consortium. Participation in the process will enable Azerbaijan to lobby the construction of Kars – Akhalkalaki railway. It is known that the Abkhazian road will gain significance for the region if only it has an outlet to Turkey. Baku tries to speed up the solution of issue on railway construction, so that Yerevan is dropped out of the global transport network. It is important for Azerbaijan to manage to do something before the launch of Kars Gyumri railway which will make Armenia a transit country. In Baku they rely on the assumption that the perspective of reactivation of Transcaucasian railway will activate the issue of constructing Kars-Akhalkalaki railway.
Azerbaijan authorities do not conceal their striving to speed up the negotiations on constructing the railway aimed at providing direct communication with Georgia and Turkey. Official Baku did everything to achieve success in the negotiations between the minister of transport of Turkey Binali Iyildirim and the minister of economic development of Georgia Aleko Aleksishvili. The meeting took place at the end of last year in Tbilisi. During the meeting it was decided to create a bilateral working group which will study all the details and submit a report. Azerbaijan confirms its readiness to participate in the funding of the project which seems to be doomed to death. It is obvious that Baku is interested in the success of the project more than Ankara and Tbilisi. The trouble is that Baku officials have less and less grounds for optimism since Turkey becomes more and more yielding in the question of opening the border with Armenia. The illusions of Azerbaijan concerning the perspectives of Kars – Akhalkalaki project will drift away already in April when the work group announces its findings and conclusions on the economic expediency of constructing a new railway in the presence of already existing one.
