By Yousef Bardouka
Telecom Armenia and Azertelecom have signed agreements to route internet traffic through each other’s territories. According to RFE/RL, the agreement would allow Azerbaijan to provide its exclave Nakhichevan with internet connectivity using Armenian infrastructure.
The agreements were announced on Monday, June 22, with both companies issuing statements saying that the agreement provides for the transmission and transit of internet through their respective countries on a commercial basis.
In nearly identical statements, Telecom Armenia and Azertelecom said that it was expanding the number and geography of countries supplying international internet traffic, ‘ensuring transit to Azerbaijan through its own infrastructure’.
According to RFE/RL, Telecom Armenia has not specified how much it will receive in exchange for Azertelecom using its infrastructure. Additionally, the outlet cited the company’s deputy director Aram Barseghyan as saying that Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) must first greenlight the agreement before its implementation.
Barseghyan also clarified that connections would be made in Kornidzor and Yeraskh. Kornidzor is located in eastern Armenia, near the border with Azerbaijan and the Lachin region. Yeraskh is located in western Armenia, near the border with Turkey and Nakhichevan. He also added that the Azerbaijani side will not connect to Armenia’s network or data, but would only be able to use its cables with a speed of 100 gigabits per second.
