TRIPP: Vahagn Khachaturyan signs the ratification as parliament turns to the project company
- Published
- Place
- Yerevan, Armenia
- Event date
- Past event —
Summary
The “Trump Route” has cleared another hurdle. Armenian President Vahagn Khachaturyan signed on 10 November the law ratifying the framework agreement on strategic cooperation with the United States on the TRIPP project, his office announced on Wednesday 11 November. MPs had approved it on 28 October by 63 votes to 32. The same day, the head of state also signed the ratification of the Board of Peace charter and of the services and investment agreement with the United Arab Emirates. Now comes the company that will carry out the project. The government has asked for an extraordinary sitting of the National Assembly at 11:00 on Thursday 12 November. On the agenda: seven bills exempting companies created under a ratified treaty, in which the state holds at least 25%, from rules on public procurement, competition and public–private partnerships.
The signature came without ceremony. According to the presidential statement, quoted by Russia’s TASS agency and by News.am, Vahagn Khachaturyan signed the law on 10 November. It ratifies the Armenian–US framework agreement on the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity”, known as TRIPP.
The text provides for a transport link across Syunik between Azerbaijan and its Nakhchivan exclave, with railways, roads, power lines and communication networks. It stems from the declaration signed in Washington on 8 August 2025 by Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham Aliyev in the presence of Donald Trump.
Several laws signed at once
The president signed other texts the same day. They include the ratification of the Board of Peace charter, approved by MPs on 28 October, and of the agreement on trade in services and investment with the United Arab Emirates.
Thursday: the project company
The next step follows immediately. On 5 November the government asked for an extraordinary sitting at 11:00 this Thursday. Seven bills are to go through first and second reading, with the second possible within 24 hours. Deputy Justice Minister Tigran Dadunts presents the package on behalf of the government.
The package creates a permanent regime for companies set up under a treaty ratified by Armenia when the state owns at least 25%. That is the case of the TRIPP Development Company: 26% for Armenia and 74% for the US side, for an initial 49-year period.
According to the business outlet BusinessDaily, such companies will be able to depart from the law on joint-stock companies in ten areas through their charter or a shareholders’ agreement. They will also be exempt from the laws on public procurement and public–private partnerships. Their operations will not count as concentrations under competition law. If the state’s share falls below 25%, the regime ends.
Sovereignty guaranteed, charter still unwritten
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan told MPs on 27 October that the infrastructure will remain under Armenian sovereignty and jurisdiction. He also acknowledged that the company’s charter and shareholders’ agreement were still to be negotiated. Since 7 November, technical groups bringing together Washington, Yerevan and Baku have been working on transport and electricity.
Analysis
The sequence says it all. First the vote, then the signature, and now the legal framework for the company that will carry out the works. Without these laws, the agreement would stay on paper. The government wants speed: two readings in 24 hours. The debate is shifting. Yerevan says sovereignty is guaranteed. What remains are the exemptions: a company outside procurement and competition rules escapes the usual checks. The opposition, which voted against ratification, is likely to seize on that. The charter is still not public. That is where Armenia’s real weight in the project will be decided.
Possible consequences
If both readings pass, the laws will in turn need the president’s signature. According to the government’s note, work to set up the TRIPP Development Company can then begin.
