Baku-Tbilisi-Kars "unloaded" of extra money from Azerbaijan

Transport Minister Ziya Mammadov left for Tbilisi on Tuesday for talks on the construction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway.

Mammadov, whose name appears in publications of local and foreign media for corruption, may submit proposals to the Georgian side to resolve the differences, which were announced during a visit to Azerbaijan on December 26 by Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili.

At the end of last year, the new Georgian authorities expressed serious concerns about the project, which in the Georgian press was labeled as corruption.

As you know, the project, scheduled for completion in 2013, will have to provide transportation for between 10 to 25 million tons of cargo a year. It envisages construction of a 98-kilometre railway from the Turkish town of Kars to the Georgian town of Akhalkalaki. Most of the road (68 km) is in Turkey, and the other 30 km is in Georgia. At the same time, $202 million was spent on construction of the Turkish section, and $220 million on the Georgian one.

 By 2009, costs of the Georgian section rose by almost half, and the total project cost was $ 600 million, and by 2012 the Georgian project reached the astronomical prices at $775 million. At the same time, the construction of the Georgian section of 30 km and reconstruction of a number of other sites on a 186 km way were paid for by a loan from Baku.

The growth of the so-called ‘soft loan’ of the Georgian-Azerbaijani project was justified by several reasons: extreme weather conditions, the revaluation work, increase in world prices of building materials and supplies.

Sources in the Georgian media said Ivanishvili asked Aliyev to liberate the project from excessive funds and justify it in accordance with reality. During his visit to Baku, he received the following agreement.

  "After the meeting with the President and Prime Minister of Azerbaijan, I was convinced that our countries have excellent relations. If among us there are any minor issues, we can solve them in a friendly atmosphere," said Ivanishvili.

On the eve of the visit of the Georgian Prime Minister to Baku, pro-government media in Azerbaijan referred to a statement given by an unnamed official with tones of threats to Tbilisi if Ivanishvili made an attempt to review the current arrangements and schemes. But through the negotiations, the threats did not stop Ivanishvili. 

It is unknown how the Azerbaijani side will "reduce the costs" the project and where they will transfer the state funds allotted to Georgia in the form of soft loan. -0 –