A new U.S. proposal to lease and administer the contentious land route linking Azerbaijan to its exclave of Nakhchivan through southern Armenia has reignited debate in the South Caucasus, thrusting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan into a delicate balancing act between regional pressures and domestic concerns over sovereignty.
According to Agos columnist Yetvart Danzikyan, U.S. Ambassador to Ankara and Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack recently told diplomats that Washington is prepared to take over the 32-kilometre stretch for "a hundred-year lease," a move he argued could unlock the stalled Armenia-Azerbaijan peace track and placate Turkey's long-standing push for what Ankara and Baku call the "Zangezur Corridor."
The U.S. Offer and Armenian Response
Barrack's remark, disclosed in a question-and-answer session that largely escaped Turkish media attention, landed squarely on Pashinyan's desk last week. The Prime Minister's spokesperson, Nazeli Baghdasaryan, immediately rejected the idea as an infringement on national sovereignty. Yet Pashinyan struck a more nuanced tone during a press conference on 16 July, noting that although foreign operators manage certain Armenian assets, "all infrastructure remains the property of the Republic of Armenia." Citing Zvartnots International Airport and the national rail network, he insisted that outsourcing management "does not equate to ceding sovereignty."
A Corridor or a "Peace Crossroads"?
Turkey and Azerbaijan envision an unbroken, internationally supervised artery cutting across Armenia to connect Nakhchivan with mainland Azerbaijan, an objective crystallised in the phrase "Zangezur Corridor." Yerevan, wary of relinquishing control inside its borders, instead promotes a multilateral "Peace Crossroads" plan that would keep traffic under Armenian customs and security oversight while opening rail and road links for all regional actors, including Iran and Georgia. The corridor question has become the chief stumbling block in peace negotiations, compounding disputes over border demarcation and prisoner exchanges.
Domestic Skepticism and Political Heat
Opposition parties in Yerevan decry any foreign lease arrangement as a back-door loss of sovereignty, accusing Pashinyan of preparing to "internationalise" Armenian territory. The prime minister counters that greater connectivity could diminish Armenia's historic security dependence on Russia by easing long-frozen ties with Turkey and promoting new economic outlets. "Our psychological and practical limits on independence are directly linked to the threats we perceive from Turkey," he said. "Normalising relations expands our room to manoeuvre." Still, Barrack's additional description of Armenia as a "tribal state"—reported by Danzikyan as an "entirely separate and troubling issue"—has further inflamed nationalist sentiment.
Geopolitical Stakes
With Russia preoccupied and weakened by its war in Ukraine, Washington senses an opening to plant a strategic flag in the Caucasus. Analysts caution, however, that any U.S. footprint could invite countermoves from Moscow and Tehran, both of which are uneasy about an American-patrolled highway mere kilometers from their borders. For Ankara, U.S. involvement would guarantee a lifeline to Turkic ally Azerbaijan while reducing the logistical burden on Turkish forces.
Outlook: Crises and Opportunities
Pashinyan's five-hour meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Abu Dhabi last week produced no breakthrough on the corridor, but both sides agreed to continue talks. The Armenian leader remains optimistic that "diplomatic relations will be established and borders opened" with Turkey, yet concedes that "serious complexities" persist on all fronts.
As the U.S. makes its bid and regional capitals jostle for leverage, Armenia confronts a pivotal decision: trade a measure of control for the promise of stability and investment, or hold the line on sovereignty at the risk of prolonged isolation. With passions high at home and great-power intrigue mounting abroad, Yerevan's next steps could redefine not only its strategic landscape but the entire balance of power in the South Caucasus.
Map: Wikimedia Commons