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Day: July 16, 2026
Türkiye is working with Iraq on a comprehensive agreement to replace the existing Iraq-Türkiye Crude Oil Pipeline Agreement, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said, adding that Ankara has proposed a one-year interim arrangement to ensure uninterrupted oil flows while negotiations continue.
Armenia begins ratifying the TRIPP agreement
Armenia has begun the process of ratifying the framework agreement on strategic cooperation with the United States under the TRIPP project.
The agreement concerns the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), a transit route linking Azerbaijan with its exclave of Nakhichevan. The project forms part of the Armenian government’s Crossroads of Peace initiative, which aims to reopen regional transport links.
The government has approved the agreement and submitted it to the Constitutional Court. The court must now determine whether it complies with Armenia’s constitution.
“If the Constitutional Court finds that the obligations set out in this international agreement are compatible with Armenia’s constitution, we will submit it to the National Assembly in accordance with the established procedure and bring it before parliament for discussion,” Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said, outlining the next steps. Parliament must ratify the agreement before it can take effect.
Mirzoyan said Armenia must also finalise two more documents before it can complete the TRIPP project. They include a shareholders’ agreement and the charter of the TRIPP Development Company.
The foreign minister also commented on reports about the TRIPP+ fund. Britain’s The Guardian reported on the fund a day earlier, prompting questions in Armenia about the new structure. Mirzoyan said it was an American investment fund and would have only “an indirect connection” with the company that Armenia plans to establish.
Armenia and the United States initialled the framework agreement on strategic cooperation under the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity project on 26 May 2026.
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio took part in the initialling ceremony in Yerevan. They signed the agreement shortly afterwards through a remote procedure. Rubio signed it in Washington on 1 June, while Mirzoyan signed it in Yerevan on 4 June.
“To dispel any possible questions, I would like to note that international practice and Armenian legislation both provide for the signing of such non-simultaneous, remote agreements, and this is a widely accepted practice,” Ararat Mirzoyan said during today’s government meeting.
On 8 August 2025, the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and the United States signed a joint declaration at a summit in Washington, marking the launch of the regional connectivity project. The declaration mentioned the Trump Route project for the first time.
Before that, Armenia and Azerbaijan had failed to reach agreement on the issue. Azerbaijan had demanded a route it called the “Zangezur Corridor”. Armenia said it was ready to reopen all transport links. At the same time, it firmly rejected the term “corridor”, arguing that it implied the loss of sovereign rights over its territory.
The parties reached a compromise only in Washington. They agreed that Armenia would retain sovereign control over the route, while the United States would join the project as a business partner.
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“Armenia and the US will help strengthen peace in the South Caucasus”
According to Armenia’s foreign minister, the TRIPP project will help bring peace, stability and prosperity to the South Caucasus. He said it would achieve this by promoting:
- transport connectivity;
- infrastructure development; and
- regional and global trade.
Under the framework agreement, Armenia and the United States will establish the TRIPP Development Company. The company will have the authority to create special purpose entities and bring in additional partners to implement individual projects in Armenia.
“The entire process, from the establishment of the development company to its future operations, will fully respect Armenia’s sovereignty, jurisdiction and territorial integrity,” Ararat Mirzoyan said.
He recalled that the development company would receive land use and development rights for the relevant areas. The parties have set the initial term at 49 years. The United States will hold a 74% stake in the company, while Armenia will own the remaining 26%. If the partnership continues for another 50 years, Armenia’s share will automatically increase to 49% after the first 49-year term.
“If the term is extended, Armenia will not need to take any additional steps to obtain its 49% stake,” the minister said.
Armenia will retain control over border, customs and migration procedures
The foreign minister again stressed that, in line with Armenia’s domestic legislation and international agreements, the Armenian authorities will continue to oversee:
- security and the protection of rights;
- border control and border security;
- customs and migration procedures;
- the collection of taxes and customs duties for the state budget;
- state information systems; and
- public administrative functions.
He said these guarantees should address public concerns about Armenia retaining its sovereign rights over the territory.
What is the link between the TRIPP Development Company and TRIPP+?
Britain’s The Guardian reported that the US State Department had appointed Konstantin Sokolov to lead the TRIPP+ trade fund. Sokolov is a US investor who was born in the Soviet Union and now lives in Chicago.
Armenian media quickly picked up the report. However, questions remained about the nature of the fund and its relationship with the company that Armenia plans to establish to implement the Trump Route project.
Journalists raised the issue during the government meeting. Ararat Mirzoyan replied that the agreement between Yerevan and Washington provides for the creation of the TRIPP Development Company.
“Its founders will be the Armenian government and the TRIPP Development Company-USA, which will be established in the United States,” Mirzoyan said.
As for TRIPP+, he said it is an American company established under the TRIPP Development Company-USA. Its role will be to attract investment for the project.
“From a legal perspective, TRIPP+ has only an indirect relationship with the TRIPP Development Company that will be established in Armenia,” the minister said..
Armenia begins ratifying the TRIPP agreement
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