MOSCOW, August 26. /TASS/. Western countries are using the South Caucasus Railway as a tool of blackmail against Armenia, demanding that Yerevan remove the "Russian factor" in exchange for alleged multi-million investments, the Russian Foreign Ministry told TASS.

The matter was recently discussed on the sidelines of the meeting of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Cholpon-Ata on August 6-7, where Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk provided a detailed comment on it, according to the ministry. "Russian Economic Development Minister Maxim Reshetnikov has also commented on the issue of Russia's management of the Armenian railway network," the ministry noted.

"Considering the fact that the issue of the concession’s transfer to anyone else has not been raised previously, it is very likely that the Armenian leadership is simply being blackmailed. They're demanding to remove the ‘Russian factor’ in the transport sector in exchange for promised multi-million investments and joining projects that are economically dubious. This is quite in line with Western capitals’ dirty tricks to squeeze Russia out of the South Caucasus region," the ministry said in response to a question asking whether Yerevan had contacted Moscow through diplomatic channels regarding the South Caucasus Railway concession.

In February 2008, a concession agreement was signed in Yerevan between Russian Railways and the Republic of Armenia, transferring the country's rail transport system to the management of the South Caucasus Railway. According to the document, the concession term is 30 years, with the right to extend it for an additional 10 years after the first 20 years of operation by mutual consent of the parties.