BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 20. In recent years, there has been a growing tendency in cargo transportation volume between Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan, particularly in the east-west direction, the Minister of Transport and Communications of Kyrgyzstan Tilek Tekebayev said on the eve of the President of Kyrgyzstan's visit to Azerbaijan, TurkicWorld reports.
He proposed connecting a southern transport corridor in Central Asia (CA) to the large East-West route, which is part of the TRACECA project and is supported by the Middle Corridor.
"This internal southern transport corridor will support the regional development of Central Asia and will allow increasing cargo flows not only to CA but also to neighboring states, in particular to Azerbaijan," the minister said.
To note, President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov will pay a visit to Azerbaijan on April 24–25.
TRACECA (Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia) is an international transport initiative that includes the European Union and 12 Eastern European, Caucasus, and Central Asian member states. The program's goal is to improve economic contacts, trade, and transportation in the Black Sea basin, South Caucasus, and Central Asia. It has a permanent secretariat in Baku, Azerbaijan, which was initially funded by the European Commission, and a regional office in Odesa, Ukraine. Since 2009, member countries have fully funded the organization.