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Opening of Zangazur corridor to create new opportunities for region - Analysis

Politics 15 January 2022 20:00 (UTC +04:00)
Opening of Zangazur corridor to create new opportunities for region - Analysis

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 15

By Elchin Mehdiyev - Trend:

One of the important results of Azerbaijan’s historic victory in the 44-day second Karabakh war [from late Sept. to early Nov.2020] is the issue of opening the Zangazur corridor.

The issue has been reflected in the trilateral statement of November 10, 2020 [between the president of Azerbaijan, Russia, and Armenia’s prime minister to end the 2020 Karabakh war] and is very important for the region’s development

Azerbaijani MP Vugar Iskandarov told Trend that 2020 went down in the history of Azerbaijan with golden letters, and its victory in the 44-day war has created new realities in the region.

"As it’s known, the opening of Zangazur corridor will serve many purposes, including connection of Azerbaijan with Turkey through a new transport project. Four years ago, the official opening ceremony of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway took place in Baku," the MP reminded.

"The Zangazur corridor will become the second after the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, that will connect the two countries, thus creating new opportunities for Azerbaijan," Iskandarov noted. "Moreover, the country’s main part will be connected by railway with the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Azerbaijan also demands that a road be built in Western Zangazur, in Meghri, which is under the control of Armenia, since both a railway and a road must be created for the full operation of the corridor."

"Besides, work has already begun on the construction of the Barda-Aghdam railway, which is part of the Horadiz - Aghband - Zangazur corridor," added the MP.

According to Vasif Huseynov, senior adviser of the Center for Analysis of International Relations, the opening of Zangazur corridor is of great importance both for Azerbaijan and other countries of the region.

He noted that for Azerbaijan, this corridor, first of all, will serve to optimize communication between the main part of the country and its Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic and provide direct access to Turkey through Nakhchivan, thus increasing the importance of the Trans-Caspian transport corridor.

"The opening of Zangazur corridor will create additional opportunities for other countries - Armenia, Russia and Iran. For Armenia, this means getting a more stable access to Russia and Iran," the center’s representative said.

"The creation of such conditions will contribute to the intensive development of ties between countries of the region and the formation of a cooperation environment. In this context, the potential of the regional cooperation platform in the "3 + 3" format, which was proposed after the 2020 war, is considered to be high," he also noted.

"The Zangazur corridor opens a new window of opportunity for the political rapprochement of the region’s countries," added Huseynov.

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