Armenia, Azerbaijan, and the United States have signed a trilateral agreement. Part of the agreement includes granting the United States exclusive rights to develop the Zangezur Corridor, known as the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), for the next 99 years. The goal is to connect the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic to the rest of Azerbaijan without checkpoints through Armenia. The agreement thus offers Azerbaijan a connection to its Turkish ally, without crossing Armenia, reduces Iranian influence by cutting off its direct land access to Russia, and, most importantly, allows the United States to effectively replace Russia as the peacekeeping force in the Caucasus region. The Russians were not even consulted. The agreement also effectively ends the 37-year conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over control of Nagorno-Karabakh, which saw the Azerbaijanis defeat the Armenians in its final stages.
