Recent geopolitical developments in the region and growing tensions along maritime trade routes have significantly heightened global interest in Azerbaijan’s transport sector.
Sea-news.az reports transport expert Rauf Agamirzayev made these remarks to “Report” while commenting on President Ilham Aliyev’s address at the 8th Congress of the New Azerbaijan Party (YAP).
According to the expert, Azerbaijan occupies a strategic geographic position, and conflicts in the Middle East alongside escalations in the Red Sea, Strait of Hormuz, and Suez Canal have dramatically shifted focus toward overland transit corridors:
“Currently, there is no alternative to our ‘East-West’ international transport corridor. This is due to the fact that both our northern and southern neighbors are under sanctions and in a state of war. This further amplifies the focus on our country.”
R. Agamirzayev highlighted that over the past two decades, Azerbaijan has achieved major progress across infrastructure components, including pipelines, airport hubs, modern port facilities, and a dominant Caspian maritime fleet. Noting that Azerbaijan initiated the Zangezur Corridor concept following the liberation of its territories, he mentioned that the missing Rasht-Astara railway link along the “North-South” route is scheduled for completion within three years, while the Aghband-Kalala highway bridge is already constructed and ready for operations.
Furthermore, Agamirzayev stressed that maximizing the Middle Corridor’s potential requires expanding warehousing capacity, developing new logistics hubs, evaluating capabilities for transporting hazardous and oversized cargo, and attracting manufacturing localization to Azerbaijan as a natural bridge between Europe and Asia.
