US has told Armenia it is ready to manage transport corridor with Azerbaijan, Armenpress reports

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FILE PHOTO: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan waves as he arrives to attend the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit at the Grand Palais in Paris, France, February 11, 2025. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said the U.S. had offered to manage a potential transport corridor that would link the bulk of Azerbaijan to an Azerbaijani exclave via Armenian territory, the Armenpress news agency reported on Wednesday.

The potential corridor, which Baku is keen to secure, would run roughly 32 km (20 miles) through Armenias southern Syunik province, linking the majority of Azerbaijan to Nakhchivan, an Azerbaijani exclave that borders Bakus ally Turkey.

Azerbaijan does not want the corridor to be controlled solely by Armenia due to concerns that Yerevan could revoke access too easily.

Asked at a news conference if Armenia had received a specific proposal from Washington regarding the proposed corridor, Pashinyan said: Yes, we have received proposals from the United States, Armenpress, a state news agency, reported.

The transit link is one of several stumbling blocks to a peace deal between Azerbaijan and Armenia, neighbours in the South Caucasus region who have fought a series of wars since the late 1980s and remain arch rivals.

The countries said in March they had finalised a draft peace deal, but the timeline for signing it remains uncertain.

Pashinyans comments came days after the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, Tom Barrack, said that Washington has proposed taking over the planned transit corridor.