President Aliyev Highlights Azerbaijan’s Vital Role in International Transport Routes

President Ilham Aliyev highlighted Azerbaijan’s growing role as a key hub in international transport routes during the “SCO Plus” meeting, a high-level assembly of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) leaders.

He explained that Azerbaijan’s strategic location and significant investments in transport infrastructure have made it a major transport and logistics hub in Eurasia.

“The annual handling capacity of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway – an integral part of the Middle Corridor, has increased from 1 million tons to 5 million tons thanks to the Azerbaijani investments,” President Aliyev stated, also noting ongoing efforts to ensure digitalization of the Middle Corridor to improve East-West transportation.

Additionally, there are plans to increase the annual capacity of the Alat International Sea Trade Port from 15 million tons to 25 million tons.

The Middle Corridor, which is also known as the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), started in 2013, aiming to enhance the transit potential of Central Asian and South Caucasus countries. Member states of the TITR International Association include Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Romania, and Türkiye.

Compared to the Northern Corridor, the Middle Corridor, with about 4,250 km of rail lines and about 500 km of seaways, offers a more cost-effective and faster trade route, reducing travel distance by 2,000 kilometers. 

Azerbaijan has been investing in the Middle Corridor by upgrading its transport network, including railways. In May, Azerbaijan Railways completed the expansion of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, modernizing the 184-km Georgian section to increase annual throughput from 1 million tons to 5 million tons. The first train on the upgraded BTK left Azerbaijan for Türkiye on May 25. 

Starting in July, Chinese suppliers began sending regular container block trains on the Middle Corridor to Azerbaijan, with the first train expected to reach Baku within 8-12 days. 

In 2023, 2.8 million tons of cargo traveled across the Middle Corridor, a 64 percent increase from 2022.

Azerbaijan also supports the Middle Corridor through the Baku International Sea Trade Port, the largest trade port along the Caspian Sea. The port operates during its first phase with a capacity of up to 15 million tons of cargo, including 10,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU). Once the second phase is complete, the port will handle 25 million tons of cargo, including 500,000 TEU.

North-South International Corridor

For the North-South transportation corridor, President Aliyev stated that Azerbaijan’s railroad and highway infrastructure is fully operational and being expanded. Current efforts aim to increase railway cargo capacity to 15 million tons annually, with plans to eventually reach 30 million tons.

The North-South Corridor, stretching 7,200 kilometers from India to Russia, includes rail, road, and sea transport routes, optimizing trade among participating countries. This corridor connects Europe, the Persian Gulf, and the Indian Ocean. Both the Western and Eastern routes pass through Iran, with the Western route also going through Azerbaijan, and the Eastern route extending through Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. It also includes direct sea transport from Russia to Iran via the Caspian Sea.

Azerbaijan has been actively involved in developing the North-South Transport Corridor according to its “Strategic Roadmap for the Development of Logistics and Trade.”

In October 2023, President Aliyev inaugurated the Baku-Guba-Russia toll road, a 150-kilometer highway from Baku to the Russian border. This high-quality, four-lane road, part of the North-South Transport Corridor, is 13 kilometers shorter than the older route and features 40 overpasses, 52 underpasses, and over 2,000 traffic signs and information boards. Six toll collection and weight control points along the 129-kilometer section collect fees based on distance, weight, and the number of trips per month.