TRIPP takes step toward implementation

The Armenian government approved a bill July 16 to formalize the country’s role in the development of the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, or TRIPP, which is envisioned as a key node in the emerging Middle Corridor trade network.

The bill affirms the development guidelines specified in a framework agreement signed by US and Armenia officials covering TRIPP, including operational and ownership structures. The United States is envisioned as holding a 74 percent stake in TRIPP, with the Armenian government retaining the remainder.

Prior to the cabinet vote, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan explained the bill’s provisions and outlined the Armenian state’s responsibilities for ensuring implementation of the framework agreement. He emphasized that the bill contained no new provisions and was consistent with the US-Armenian framework agreement signed in January, along with the provisional Armenian-Azerbaijani peace deal, signed at the White House in August 2025. TRIPP is considered the centerpiece of the peace deal.

The government bill now will undergo legal review by Armenia’s Constitutional Court. Provided it wins court approval, the bill will go to parliament for a vote.

A freshly created entity, the TRIPP Development Co., will have a 49-year lease to build and operate the transit route. Mirzoyan noted that before construction can start, two additional agreements will have to be negotiated and signed – a shareholders’ agreement and a TRIPP Development Co. charter.

Meanwhile, the US State Department named Konstantin Sokolov, a Chicago-based private equity investor, to head a $200 million US government enterprise fund designed to promote the Middle Corridor trade network’s development, including TRIPP.

According to a report published by the Guardian, Sokolov – who was born in St. Petersburg, Russia, and emigrated to the United States in the early 1990s – was among the large-scale donors to Trump’s project to build a ballroom occupying the East Wing of the White House. The Guardian report noted that many ballroom donors have subsequently received government advisory roles or official appointments.

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