Great Britain is taking the “Zangezur corridor” for itself

Following the signing of several documents in Washington on August 8—most notably the declaration establishing the so-called “Trump Route” (TRIPP), a veiled name for the “Zangezur corridor”—experts in Armenia, Russia, and other countries noted that US President Donald Trump had effectively wrested control from Britain not only over the “Zangezur corridor”, but also over the “Middle corridor,” or, as Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan might call it, the “Turan Road.”

Based on this logic, it should be noted that after the signing of the deal between the United States and Ukraine on minerals, under which Volodymyr Zelensky handed over all Ukrainian mineral resources to the Americans, the US attempt to take control of the “Zangezur corridor” marks a second major geopolitical clash between Washington and London in the post-Soviet space. The thing is that a number of Ukrainian sources reported that the “Centenary Partnership Agreement between Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland” signed in January 2025 included several unpublished provisions concerning the control of Ukrainian mineral resources. However, on April 9, the United States and Ukraine signed a new agreement, transferring Ukraine’s subsoil rights to the Americans. Washington, apparently, wanted to repeat something similar in the South Caucasus region.

However, London is “striking back”: last week, the UK announced it was elevating its relationship with Azerbaijan to the level of a strategic partnership. This was confirmed by British Minister for European Affairs Stephen Doughty, who visited Baku and met with President Ilham Aliyev. During the meeting with the President of Azerbaijan, Doughty discussed the possibilities of expanding cooperation in economic development and security, emphasizing “Azerbaijan’s key role in ensuring regional stability and prosperity.”

Britain is “coming from the rear” and trying to take total control of the governments in Yerevan and Baku to neutralize the American presence along the “Turan Road”. In other words, we can state that in addition to the obvious regional conflict that Yerevan provokes by giving control of communications through its territory to an extra-regional player, which contradicts not only the principles of Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity but also poses a threat to Iran and Russia, Yerevan also brings contradictions of extra-regional players to the region, namely London and Washington.

Armenia is confidently moving towards becoming a regional springboard for the clash of interests and contradictions among major global players—those in the “top league” of international politics.

Think about it…