Expert: Armenia can become a transit country - it is enough for this to carry out only 1% of the total share of cargo transportation between Russia and Iran

ArmInfo. Armenia has every  opportunity to become a transit country. On June 6, Gagik Aghajanyan,  the executive director of the largest freight- forwarding company  Apaven, at a press conference expressed this opinion, referring to  the activities of the company he leads.  

"There is a lot of talks  about the fact that Armenia is surrounded partially, but we overlook  it," he said. The company Apaven carries out orders from Russia to  Iran, for which it receives funds and pays taxes, he said, noting in  this connection that such an experience has long been active in  Georgia. In his opinion, if within the framework of these supplies  Armenia acts as a transit country, assuming at least 1% of the total  share of cargo transportation between Iran and Russia, this will lead  to a tangible replenishment of the state budget of the country. "For  us, this is an exciting opportunity, as a small country, to be a link  between two powerful economies," he stressed.

To note, APAVEN Company was founded in 1993 and is a large forwarding  company with its network of offices abroad, with full and advanced  technical equipment and with a large client and partner base.

According to the National Statistical Service of Armenia, the volume  of cargo transportation in Armenia in 2016 increased by 85.3% to  20,485.2 thousand tons by the same period of the previous year. Out  of them, 16,248.8 thousand tons (79.3% of the total) account for road  transport, which increased 2.4-fold year-on-year. Rail freight  traffic for the year increased by 3.1% - up to 2 610.9 thousand tons.  Air transportation also increased - by 79.4% - to 18.3 thousand tons.  In the first quarter of 2017, the volume of cargo transportation in  Armenia increased by 88.9% - up to 6 049.8 thousand tons, comparing  previous year, while road freight increased 2.3 times to 4,860.2  thousand tons, rail freight for the reporting period decreased by  3.1% to 584.3 thousand tons and air transportation increased by 77.8%  to 4.8 thousand tons.