Armenian lawmaker says TRIPP not to host foreign forces

The Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) will not involve the deployment of foreign security forces in Armenia, Armenian lawmaker Sarkis Khandanyan said.

Khandanyan, a member of the ruling Civil Contract party, said in parliament that TRIPP was an infrastructure project rather than a separate territory or military base, Caliber.Az reports via Armenian media.

He said responsibility for securing the route would remain with the relevant Armenian authorities.

Khandanyan’s remarks came as his candidacy is being discussed for the chairmanship of the parliamentary Foreign Relations Committee.

On August 8, 2025, a Joint Declaration was signed in Washington during a summit hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump, attended by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The leaders endorsed a joint declaration outlining a seven-point framework emphasising sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the renunciation of force.

Foreign ministers from both nations initialled a draft “Agreement on Establishment of Peace and Inter-State Relations,” witnessed by Trump, Aliyev, and Pashinyan. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised the deal as a historic step toward enduring peace.

A key feature of the agreement is the creation of the “Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity” (TRIPP), also called the Zangezur Corridor — a transit passage through Armenia’s Syunik province connecting mainland Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave.

By Aghakazim Guliyev