INSTC

Last updated: May 29, 2026

The International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) is a multimodal trade route linking Russia to the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean through Iran, providing an alternative to the Suez Canal route for goods moving between South Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The corridor combines rail, road, and sea links and has gained strategic relevance as Western sanctions on Russia and Iran have pushed both countries to deepen economic cooperation with non-Western partners.

For Armenia, the INSTC represents a potential economic opportunity and a strategic hedge. Armenia’s position between Russia to the north and Iran to the south makes it a natural transit country for north-south trade flows, and deeper integration with the corridor could reduce the economic costs of Armenia’s landlocked geography. The corridor is often discussed alongside the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), a US-backed connectivity initiative that competes with the INSTC for defining the region’s economic architecture.

Groong covers the INSTC in the context of Armenia’s foreign policy choices, its relationship with Iran and Russia, and the broader competition between Western and non-Western connectivity frameworks in the South Caucasus. Episodes in this category address the corridor’s economic potential, the political conditions attached to participation, and what deepened INSTC involvement would mean for Armenia’s Western integration ambitions.

Pietro Shakarian - Russian-Iranian Partnership Pact | Ep 407, Jan 27, 2025 [EP407]

Posted on Monday, Jan 27, 2025 | Category: Russia, Iran, Ukraine, Armenia, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, BRICS, Syria, Turkey, Israel, NATO, Middle East, Azerbaijan, China, Georgia, India | Series: cog

Guest:

Topics:

  • Russo-Iranian Partnership Treaty
  • Implications of 🇷🇺 - 🇮🇷 pact for Armenia
  • Trump Back in Office: War or Peace?

Episode 407 | Recorded: January 25, 2025

Benyamin Poghosyan - China, BRICS, New World Order, Armenia in Kazan, Georgian Elections in 2024 | Ep 382 - Nov 4, 2024 [EP382]

Posted on Monday, Nov 4, 2024 | Category: China, World Order, Georgia, Armenia, Russia, USA, India, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Artsakh Blockade, BRICS, NATO, Turkey, Iran, Economy, European Union, Geopolitics, Syria | Series: cog

Guest:

Topics:

  • China, and the New World Order
  • BRICS Summit and Multipolarity
    • Armenia at BRICS
  • Georgian Elections in 2024

Episode 382 | Recorded: October 29, 2024

Sergei Melkonian - Iran President and FM Killed in Helicopter Crash | Bagrat Srbazan Leads Mass Protests in Armenia | Armenian Russian Relations | Ep 333 - May 26, 2024 [EP333]

Posted on Tuesday, May 28, 2024 | Category: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, India, Armenian Church, Israel, Turkey, Middle East, Ukraine, European Union, Georgia, Human Rights, NATO | Series: wir

Guest:

Topics:

  • Iran President and FM Killed in Helicopter Crash
  • Bagrat Srbazan Leads Mass Protests in Armenia
  • Armenian Russian Relations

Episode 333 | Recorded: May 27, 2024

Benyamin Poghosyan, Rananjay Anand - Indian-Armenian Relations in 2024 | Ep 327 - May 2, 2024 [EP327]

Posted on Friday, May 3, 2024 | Category: India, Armenia, Relations, Politics, Iran, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Georgia, Russia, European Union, Economy, Israel, Middle East, Geopolitics, Ukraine, China, NATO | Series: cog

Guests:

Topics:

  • Impressions: Raisina 2024 Dialogue
  • Indian Community
  • Trade Opportunities
  • Defense & Security

Episode 327 | Recorded: April 26, 2024

Archil Sikharulidze - Georgia, Armenia, Partnership & Politics in the South Caucasus | Ep 315 - Mar 13, 2024 [EP315]

Posted on Wednesday, Mar 13, 2024 | Category: Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Russia, India, European Union, NATO, Ukraine, Iran, Genocide, Economy, Human Rights | Series: cog

Guest:

Topics:

  • Georgian Nationalism and Identity
  • Georgia, Armenia, post 2018
  • Accession to the EU
  • Strategic Partnership

Episode 315 | Recorded: March 12, 2024

Ehsan Movahedian - Iran Parliamentary Elections | Geopolitical U-Turn in Armenia? | Iran Armenia Relations | Anti-Iranian Propaganda from NGOs| Ep 314 - Mar 12, 2024 [EP314]

Posted on Wednesday, Mar 13, 2024 | Category: Iran, Armenia, Middle East, Nagorno Karabakh, Artsakh, Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey, India, Georgia, NATO, Israel, Economy, European Union, Geopolitics, Lebanon, Syria, Ukraine | Series: cog

Guest:

Topics:

  • Iran Parliamentary Elections
  • Geopolitical U-turn in Armenia?
  • Iran Armenia Relations
  • Anti-Iranian Propaganda from NGOs

Episode 314 | Recorded: March 11, 2024

Yeghia Tashjian - Aftermath of the Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh | Israeli-Palestinian Crisis & Ripples | Ep. 288 - Oct 22, 2023 [EP288]

Posted on Sunday, Oct 22, 2023 | Category: Armenia, Politics, Israel, Middle East, Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, Russia, Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan, China, India, Artsakh Blockade, Armenian Genocide, Lebanon, Georgia, Syria, Ukraine, Genocide, European Union | Series: wir

Guest:

Topics:

  • Aftermath of the Ethnic Cleansing of Artsakh
    • Shahramanyan meets Protesters
    • “Rights & Security”
    • Government-in-Exile
  • Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
    • Ripple Effects to the South Caucasus
    • Effects in the Middle East
    • Lebanon & the Armenian Community

Episode 288 | Recorded: October 22, 2023

Negotiations Carousel | Meghri Railway | Rasht-Astara Railway | Kornidzor Rally | Artsakh Politics | Ep 256 - May 21, 2023 [EP256]

Posted on Monday, May 22, 2023 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Politics, Nagorno Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran, Artsakh Blockade, Armenian Genocide, India, Genocide, Ukraine, Turkey, Israel, Georgia | Series: wir

Guest:

Topics:

  • Accelerated Negotiations
    • Negotiations Carousel
    • Meghri Railway
    • Russia Finances Rasht-Astara
    • Rallies in Artsakh and Kornidzor
  • Artsakh Domestic Politics

Episode 256 | Recorded: May 22, 2023

Armenia’s Diplomacy and Corridors Politics | Ep. 93 - Oct 19, 2021 [EP93]

Posted on Tuesday, Oct 19, 2021 | Category: Armenia, Artsakh, Azerbaijan, Nagorno Karabakh, Iran, Turkey, Economy, India, Russia, Georgia, China, Syria | Series: cog

Armenia’s Diplomacy and Corridor Politics

Topics:

  • In the past month a flurry of diplomatic activity has risen around Armenia. The top diplomats from neighboring countries, regional and global powers have met with Armenia’s top leadership to discuss the shifting geopolitics reshaping the South Caucasus politically and economically for the coming decades. How is Armenia’s diplomacy navigating the “Corridor Politics” and what are the prospects for a peaceful neighborhood?

Guest:

Episode 93 | Recorded: October 18, 2021