New transport corridor passing through Zangazur to be completed this year
The Zangazur Corridor is a strategic transportation route extending from the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, to Kars, Turkiye's eastern province, passing through Armenian territory near the country's border with Iran. Work on the Turkish section of the new transport corridor that will pass through Zangazur is set to be completed this year, according to Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloglu, Azernews reports.
According to him, an alternative corridor is being established from Azerbaijan to Kars (through the Zangazur corridor): “At present, the work on the Azerbaijani part of the corridor is about to be completed. We are also doing work in Dilucu, Igdir, and Kars, and it is planned to be completed this year. This will be a very serious alternative,” the minister said.
The corridor is part of a big transportation project connecting Baku with Istanbul and is crucial for increasing regional connectivity throughout the Caucasus and across greater Eurasia, joining Turkish, Russian, Central Asian, Iranian, and Armenian territories and linking Europe to Asia. The connectivity the corridor will enable will also help galvanize trade relations between different states.
The Zangazur Corridor plays an important role in giving Azerbaijan unrestricted access to its Nakhchivan enclave without any Armenian checkpoints while it passes through Armenian territory near the Tehran-Yerevan border. It is also part of the International North–South Transport Corridor, which will serve as a linking point between Russia and Iran, increasing Tehran's access to the region.
The corridor is seen as a way to unite the Turkic world, with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev stating that it will "connect the whole Turkic world". Türkiye's land connection with Azerbaijan also means that Ankara will have better access to Turkic states in Central Asia, with which it has strong historical and cultural ties.
The Zangazur Corridor is a big deal, as it has the potential to significantly boost interregional connectivity far and wide. The corridor is being supported by both NATO and Russia and is seen as a way to improve relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia. With work on the Turkish section of the new transport corridor set to be completed this year, the Zangazur Corridor is set to become a reality.
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