Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan participated in the 3rd International Conference “Yerevan Dialogue”. The conference was attended by President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron, President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan, President of the National Assembly Alen Simonyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ararat Mirzoyan, high-ranking guests from abroad, members of the Government, representatives of the legislative.

The Prime Minister delivered a speech, in which, in particular, he touched upon the project of the Government of the Republic of Armenia “Crossroads of Peace”, as well as “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity”.

“Honorable President of the French Republic, Mr. Emmanuel Macron,
Honorable President of the Republic of Armenia,
Dear colleagues,

I am glad for this opportunity and thank you for your presence. I would like to present to you what has happened with the Republic of Armenia in recent years, if we can say during the existence of the “Yerevan Dialogue” conference.

Something very important and essential has happened, which may even seem incredible: the geographical position of the Republic of Armenia has changed. We now have a completely different geographical position than we had just a few years ago, and I want to say that, understandably, the Republic of Armenia is in the same place where it was before. This is the whole meaning and subtlety, that being in the same place, we now have a completely different geographical position than we had before. But in order to accurately describe today's geographical position to you, I want to talk about what the average perception of geographical position was in the past, which, by the way, was widespread both among us and in foreign perceptions about us.

Previously, it was noted that the Republic of Armenia has a very complex and problematic geographical position, because it is located in a problematic region, having a problematic neighborhood and, consequently, faced existential risks arising from that neighborhood. Perhaps it was this perception, by the way, the origins of which still needs to be discussed and pondered about, that guided our state, our consciousness, all our actions, decisions, perceptions about ourselves and the world. Today, I can state this, a truly historical event has taken place in the sense that now the brief description of the geographical position of the Republic of Armenia is not that the Republic of Armenia is located in the problematic environment of a problematic region, but the description of the geographical position of the Republic of Armenia is that, as can be seen from this map, the shortest route connecting the east to the west and vice versa passes through the Republic of Armenia. And this perception brings with it a completely new picture and a new image of the Republic of Armenia, its situation and its potential.

Today, the task of the Government of the Republic of Armenia is to approach issues from this very perspective and to build the strategies of the Republic of Armenia on this very perspective. It for describing these strategies that we have adopted and are implementing two interrelated and interconnected projects.

The first of them, which I had the opportunity to present, is the “Crossroads of Peace” project, and the second, which I am sure you know about, is the TRIPP project, “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity.” The “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity” project, first of all, in our perception, is the restoration of the railway connection between the East and the West. Of course, when it comes to the railway, first of all, it assumes certain conditions, including geographical and landscape. It is obvious that we have a main route at this stage, and it is this route passing through the south of Armenia, through which we imagine the process of connecting the East with the West and continue that way. But the railway is not the only direction of the TRIPP project.

I would like to emphasize that within the framework of the TRIPP project and also within the framework of the "Crossroads of Peace" project, power lines are envisaged, pipelines, oil pipelines, gas pipelines are envisaged, which are not at all required to pass along the route I mentioned, all of these projects can be implemented throughout the entire territory of the Republic of Armenia conditioned by numerous engineering and technical nuances.

Now we are focused on this very issue, in order to realize this potential, which is hidden in just one sentence. In general, much is talked about the investment interest of countries, but as a result of these recent discussions, I have noted that the Republic of Armenia is already in a geographical position, and, of course, all this in the conditions of peace established between Armenia and Azerbaijan with the support of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, when the investment environment of Armenia and the investment status of Armenia are changing significantly. That status is changing as follows: I think this is a phrase, a sentence that can become the investment brand of the Republic of Armenia, and that sentence is the following: “The shortest route between the East and the West,” because now, in the modern world, the problem, as you know, is not only the security of the flow of goods and services, but also the speed of that transportation, and the shortest route means the fastest route. Our task is to provide the cheapest way and the most efficient way, because now we also need to make this observation: companies compete, including on the speed of delivering goods, and the one who is the fastest is perhaps also the most successful. Although speed is not the only guarantee of success. Our task is to realize our potential. This is a very important observation. Significant and turning points have occurred in our reality, because, for example, in particular, just a few years ago, when talking about the Republic of Armenia, it was said, one could say, and this was our general perception, that the Republic of Armenia, for example, is a country without energy resources, and that was true. And this expression showed Armenia's vulnerability in energy and other aspects. But I want to say that although nothing has changed, within the parameters of the Republic of Armenia, now the Republic of Armenia is a country with unlimited energy resources. This is the most interesting point of our time, when a country can be under the same geographical coordinates, but its geographical position has changed. Can a country transform from one without energy resources into one with unlimited energy resources and? No, I am not keeping anything secret, no oil and gas deposits have been discovered in Armenia, and the Republic of Armenia, like many other countries, has unlimited energy potential due to the development of solar energy. Our task in the near future is to focus on this issue in order to utilize the unlimited potential that has emerged for the Republic of Armenia, including in the energy sector.

Of course, I said that there have been no geographical or resource changes around the Republic of Armenia at all, but one thing has certainly changed significantly, that today the Republic of Armenia lives in peace, and peace has been established between Armenia and Azerbaijan. This is the turning point, because why did not we notice before that we have a magnificent geographical position? It is the absence of peace or it is the conflict that closed our vision, and we could not notice what is clearly before our eyes.

And I want to emphasize this, once again expressing my appreciation to the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, whose role in the peace established today is pivotal, because the architecture about which we are talking today was ultimately recorded on October 6, 2022, in Prague, as a result of the quadrilateral meeting initiated by President Macron and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, when Armenia and Azerbaijan recognized each other's territorial integrity, in essence, on the basis of the Alma-Ata Declaration, mutually recognizing each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty and agreeing that the Alma-Ata Declaration will be the basis for the demarcation of the borders of the two countries. This is a turning point, and President Macron's personal contribution to this turning point is simply difficult to overestimate.

And distinguished guests, distinguished colleagues,

My conclusion from all this, specifically on the example of the Republic of Armenia, is that it seems that by changing the physical or visible or concrete parameters of circumstances, we can achieve much greater changes than we could have initially thought. And today I am happy to record that as a result of all this, the Republic of Armenia has replaced the survival agenda with the development agenda. Because what was previously considered an existential threat to us, today we are on the way to turning that threat, I mean the geographical location, into an exceptional advantage, when the Republic of Armenia is attractive for investments. Today, by the way, the European Union adopted a statement calling on international investors to invest in the Republic of Armenia. And this is an important record of the fact that peace in the Republic of Armenia is not only established, but also has international credibility, and international institutions are inviting investors to make these investments in the Republic of Armenia, and these investments are already underway. And therefore, I think our example is a very important example of how a country, without discovering new mines, can transform from a country with zero energy resources to a country with unlimited energy resources, how a country can replace a desperate geographical position with a hopeful geographical position, which, in fact, will be of key importance for the stability, peace, development and security of the country, because the security factor is also very important here. The project that we are presenting and that I am talking about is to become a reliable part of north-south, east-west route, including a reliable security factor. Because when we become, and we are already becoming such a country today, a country that in its region, in its environment, with its neighborhood, because this is also very important, because to say that the shortest route from east to west passes through the Republic of Armenia, it means to say that the shortest route from east to west passes through Azerbaijan, the shortest route from east to west passes through Türkiye. Because the shortest route from east to west cannot pass through Armenia, but not pass through Azerbaijan, pass through Armenia, but not pass through Türkiye.

And this is precisely the change in perception, that we, as is commonly said, see the borders of our country not only and not so much with a divisive meaning, because the border, nevertheless, has a divisive property, separates countries from each other, but we see the borders, including with the property of connecting, unifying, when the countries of our region will be able to respect each other's territorial integrity, sovereignty, inviolability of borders and jurisdiction, and establish such cooperation that peace will not only be beneficial to everyone, but peace will also be vital for everyone. And peace will become the main guarantee that ensures investments, ensures income, provides stability, and peace becomes a tool for self-reproduction, because peace always needs to be recharged. And this, in essence, is a cycle when peace brings prosperity, prosperity peace, peace greater prosperity, greater prosperity greater peace, more reliable peace. And I am happy to note that we are going down that path.

There is no doubt that we are going down that path, and it is a reliable path, and it is a path that helps us to move from a desperate geographical position to a reliable geographical position, from an unfavorable geographical position to a favorable geographical position, and from international and regional isolation to international and regional integration and cooperation.

And I want to end my speech with this message, and congratulate first of all, all the citizens of the Republic of Armenia, on the occasion of the change in the geographical position of the Republic of Armenia.

Thank you very much''.