Armenia willing to restore Tbilisi-Sokhumi railway connection

Armenian businessmen think that development of business activities in the country are hindered by the lack of direct road linkages with Russia. Armenia could connect with Russia through Georgia but Georgian-Russian relations are so difficult that they create serious problems for Armenia. Transportation of goods is very slow. Sometimes it needs almost 80 days. For instance goods to be transported from Russia follow this route: from the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiisk goods are transported first to Istanbul and then to Poti, where they are put onto railway carriages and transported on to Armenia. Goods transported from Armenia to Russia follow the same route.