Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 30
Trend:
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov met with a delegation led by Henrik Halolei, director-general for Mobility and Transport of the European Union, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a message.
The sides expressed satisfaction with the development of relations between Azerbaijan and the European Union and noted that the Eastern Partnership Brussels Summit gave additional impetus to the development of bilateral cooperation.
It was noted that cooperation on connectivity and transport plays an important role in the relations between the European Union with Azerbaijan.
Mammadyarov briefed on the successful transformation of Azerbaijan into the regional transport hub and logistics center, the development of the East-West and North-South transport corridors, as well as the measures taken to link transport systems of the regional countries.
As an important infrastructure component of the East-West transport corridor, the efficiency, time and speed advantages of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railroad and the support of the European Union to the project were noted.
It was also emphasized that the project, assisting to connect Chinese and European Union transport networks, will contribute to the development of economic, trade relations and people-to-people contacts, as well as regional development and prosperity.
The importance of the North-South transport corridor in relation to the connection of the Indian Ocean and the Northern European transport systems has also been emphasized at the meeting.
It was underlined that the accession of Azerbaijan to the Trans-European Transport Network and the importance given to the transport matters in the new draft partnership agreement with the European Union leads to the new opportunities in bilateral cooperation in the field of transport.
The sides exchanged views on further steps to be taken to adjust the railway infrastructure to modern standards, to ensure road safety, and further development of the Europe-Caucasus-Asia Transport Corridor (TRACECA) project.
Moreover, the negotiations between the European Union and Azerbaijan on aviation agreement were reviewed.