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Russia/Georgia: Opening Of Ferry Link To Impact Regional Trade

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  • Russia/Georgia: Opening Of Ferry Link To Impact Regional Trade

    Radio Free Europe, Czech Rep.
    Jan 10 2005

    Russia/Georgia: Opening Of Ferry Link Expected To Impact Regional
    Trade

    By Jean-Christophe Peuch


    Russia and Georgia were expected to sign an agreement today on
    opening a direct railway ferry between the Black Sea ports of Poti
    and Kavkaz. Direct railway connections between the two countries have
    been halted since 1992 amid a dispute over the secessionist region of
    Abkhazia. The Poti-Kavkaz ferry is not only important for Russia and
    Georgia. Armenia, Azerbaijan and Central Asian countries are expected
    to benefit from the new link.


    Prague, 10 January 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Addressing reporters upon his
    arrival in Tbilisi early today, Russian Transportation Minister Igor
    Levitin said he would sign three documents during his two-day visit
    to the Georgian capital.

    "We will today sign three documents -- an agreement on the ferry
    crossing, a regulation covering the transport of goods, and a
    temporary exploitation regulation. This temporary regulation will be
    effective until all countries that take part in the railway
    transportation [process] meet in February," Levitin said.

    The ferry connection stretches between the Georgian port of Poti and
    Russia's industrial terminal of Kavkaz. Georgian Economic Development
    Minister Aleksi Aleksishvili said today the line would officially
    come into service in 10 days.

    Kavkaz is a main export outlet for crude oil, oil products, and
    fertilizers. Its location on the Kerch Strait that links the Black
    Sea to the Sea of Azov makes it a major hub for goods meant to
    countries of the Mediterranean Sea basin. Russia sees the Poti-Kavkaz
    agreement as part of a long-term, larger project to resume railway
    transportation throughout the South Caucasus region.

    The agreement to be signed today will give a major impetus to direct
    Russian-Georgian trade. It is also expected to boost transit of goods
    from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Central Asian countries -- in
    particular Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, which trade with Russia
    through the Caucasus region.

    Armenian Transportation Minister Andranik Manukian, who is also in
    Tbilisi, said yesterday that his country expects direct economic
    benefit from the Poti-Kavkaz ferry link. "Economically, it is very
    profitable," he said. "This link is very short. Today we are using
    the [Ukrainian] port of Illichivsk, [south of Odesa]. But, the
    distance between Illichivsk and Poti is very long. [By contrast], the
    distance between Kavkaz and Poti is very short. Secondly, Armenia,
    Georgia, and Azerbaijan will now have a direct link with Russia."

    In a phone interview with RFE/RL's Armenian Service today, Manukian
    elaborated further on the impact Yerevan expects from the
    Russian-Georgian deal. "It will reduce by 30 percent the costs of
    transportation [of Armenian goods]," he said. "In addition, it will
    de facto establish a direct link with Russia and, consequently, help
    increase the volume of trade with Russia and other CIS countries."

    Russia sees the Poti-Kavkaz agreement as part of a long-term, larger
    project to resume railway transportation throughout the South
    Caucasus region.

    Russian Transportation Minister Levitin unveiled the plan in late
    November during a tour of the South Caucasus capitals. Addressing
    journalists in Tbilisi after signing a memorandum with the Georgian
    government, Levitin said the project will revive a major north-south
    railway corridor that has been idle since the 1992-93 war in
    Georgia's separatist republic of Abkhazia.

    "Prior to my visit to Georgia I was in Armenia and Azerbaijan, where
    I received the support of my colleagues transportation ministers, as
    well as that of the presidents. I am happy to announce that Georgia
    equally supports the idea of having a trans-regional railway
    connection. [The Georgians] believe renovating the former
    Transcaucasus railway link will seriously help revive long distance
    traffic across our [respective] countries. I am really happy to say
    that we have reached a mutual understanding with Georgia," Levitin
    said.

    Plans to revive overland traffic between eastern Turkey and southern
    Russia through Georgia and Abkhazia have been thwarted by the
    unsettled separatist conflict. For more than a decade, Tbilisi has
    been insisting that all ethnic Georgians who have been displaced by
    the 1992-93 war be allowed to return to Abkhazia before any deal is
    signed.

    Georgian Economic Development Minister Aleksishvili said today that
    no agreement has been reached yet. "No concrete decision is expected
    [soon]," he said. "We must still assess the technical feasibility of
    the project and there is also a political aspect to that issue.
    Consequently, we do not expect any breakthrough."

    Levitin said today that although no substantial progress had been
    noted recently, the reopening of a direct railway link between
    Georgia and Abkhazia was still on the agenda. "In the memorandum we
    signed [with Georgia] on 1 November, there were two issues," he said.
    "One was the opening of a ferry connection, which we will be signing
    today. The second was the resumption of through traffic. We're still
    examining the railway section that links [the Abkhaz capital] Sukhum
    to the [Georgian-Abkhaz] border on the Inguri River, where there is
    no bridge."

    Levitin said he would discuss the possible reopening of the
    Sukhum-Tbilisi railway link with Georgian Prime Minister Zurab
    Zhvania and State Minister Kakha Bendukidze later today.

    Tomorrow Levitin will visit Poti to symbolically inaugurate the ferry
    line with Kavkaz.

    (RFE/RL Armenian Service correspondent Ruzanna Stepanian contributed
    to this report)
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