Azerbaijan's Former Foreign Minister Explains Why the US is Establishing a Data Center in Armenia

The former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan has commented on the plans to establish a data center in Armenia. According to him, this involves not just a regular data storage facility, but a regional digital infrastructure element that can be used for artificial intelligence systems and other programs.

He emphasized that the management of these programs will continue to be conducted from the United States, with Armenia committed to providing electricity and other technical resources necessary for its operation. According to him, US investments may be directed in two ways: for the installation and maintenance of equipment, as well as for the construction of modular nuclear power plants for energy supply.

In the initial phase, he estimates that electricity could be supplied from the operating Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, which was built during the Soviet era. Zulfuqarov also noted that with this move, the US has effectively bypassed Russia and France, which were previously considered potential suppliers of new nuclear generation projects for Armenia.

At the same time, the former head of Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry expressed skepticism towards claims that the establishment of the data center will automatically lead to significant growth in the country’s IT sector. “Following that logic, anyone living near the Academy of Sciences should earn a scientific degree,” he remarked.

According to Zulfuqarov, proposals for setting up data centers are also being received from other countries with significant energy resources, including Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. For such countries, he claimed, data centers can become a new variant of exporting energy resources, where energy is effectively sold to foreign tech companies without the need for its physical transfer abroad.