Page 48 - IRANRptOct21

9.1.4 Transport sector news
Iran hopes new road to Armenia will be built without delay
UNESCO adds Trans-Iranian Railway to World Heritage List
India expects full-scale operations at Iran’s Chabahar
Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Armenia Abbas Badakhshan Zohouri hopes the alternative road to Goris that could be used by Iranian goods trucks delivering supplies to Armenia, but avoiding Azerbaijani territory in the process, will be built as quickly as possible, he said on September 20.
“After the 44-day war in Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia reached a trilateral peace agreement, which was followed by the launch of negotiations over demarcation. According to the maps of the Soviet Union, the two sections of the Goris-Kapan road of Armenia belong to Azerbaijan, but an agreement was reached for unobstructed traffic until the process of demarcation is launched,” said Zohouri.
“As you know, in certain sections of the Goris-Kapan road, Azerbaijani policemen and border guards have been stopping drivers transporting Iranian cargo to Armenia and have been charging Iranian drivers certain fees as customs duty for the past few days. Perhaps Azerbaijan levies a road tax for entry and exit.
“The Iranian side, including the embassy is making efforts to make sure this issue is solved as soon as possible, but until then, Iran anticipates that the Armenian government builds the alternative road in Syunik Province as soon as possible so that Iranian drivers transport cargo safely,” the ambassador said.
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee has inscribed the Trans-Iranian Railway onto its World Heritage List.
An announcement from the committee on July 25 confirmed that the railway, which runs from the Caspian Sea in Iran’s northeast to the Persian Gulf in the southwest, has been added to the list.
“Started in 1927 and completed in 1938, the 1,394-kilometer-long railway was designed and executed in a successful collaboration between the Iranian government and 43 construction contractors from many countries,” UNESCO said in astatement.
The railway is remarkable for its scale and the engineering work that was required to overcome steep routes and other difficulties, UNESCO said. Its construction involved extensive mountain cutting. Rugged terrain in various areas meant it was necessary to construct 174 large bridges, 186 small bridges and 224 tunnels.
Unlike most early railway projects, construction of the Trans-Iranian Railway was funded by national taxes to avoid foreign investment and control, UNESCO noted.
The World Heritage Committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization announced the additions to the World Heritage List after an online meeting in Fuzhou, China.
World Heritage sites can be examples of outstanding natural beauty or architecture, or they can be important geologically or ecologically or keys to human culture and tradition.
Iran’s Majlis (parliament) has passed the Iran-Afghanistan Rail Cooperation Agreement that aims for unhindered railway connections between the neighbouring countries, ICANA reported on May 31.
India expects that full-scale operations will start at Iran’s sole oceanic port, Chabahar, by the end of May, according to the Indian ports and shipping minister.
48 IRAN Country Report October 2021 www.intellinews.com