Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan mull transport cooperation dev’t

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have discussed the development of bilateral cooperation in the transport field.

The discussion took place during the meeting between Azerbaijan’s Digital Development and Transport Minister Rashad Nabiyev with the delegation headed by Kazakhstan’s Samruk-Kazyna JSC Board Chairman Almasadam Satkaliyev, who is on a visit to Azerbaijan.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the optimization of transport tariffs along the corridor and the synchronization of customs procedures to increase the volume of freight traffic along international transport corridors passing through the countries.

Rashad Nabiyev noted that transport links between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are developing on the basis of positive trends. He expressed confidence that the discussions held at the meeting will be useful for further expansion of ties.

The minister noted that corridor efficiency, regularity of transport, tariff optimization, and simplification and harmonization of regulatory and customs procedures for transit cargo from countries along the corridor are important to attract transit cargo to the Middle Corridor in the face of the competition created by neighboring transit corridors.

The parties noted that the developments in the region and the geopolitical situation have created a new reality that dictates the need to consider a new framework for cooperation and the establishment of transit transport links.

It was emphasized that the geographical features of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, i.e. their location between the largest economic centers of Europe and Asia, create real conditions for the full use of the existing transport network between the countries.

“A further impetus for the development of the route was the completion of the construction of the Baku –Tbilisi –Kars railway line. This made it possible to reduce the delivery time of cargos from China to Turkey via Kazakhstan to 12 days,” the statement reads.

Moreover, the parties stated that general guidelines should be established for starting a joint company and conducting transport and logistics activities, simplifying customs operations as part of the project to create an integrated transport system.

The meeting continued with discussions on various aspects of expanding cooperation between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan in the field of transport.