BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 27. Middle Corridor can handle more land-based trade between Europe and Asia, Miriam Garcia, European Commission spokesperson, told Trend.
“Diversifying trade routes and developing alternative reliable efficient sustainable transport connections between Europe and Asia is now more important than ever. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Middle Corridor has taken on a new relevance. Advancing cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan is instrumental to boost the role of Azerbaijan as a key connectivity hub between Europe and Asia. The Middle Corridor has potential to be handling more land-based trade between Europe and Asia, if key issues, bottlenecks, capacity shortages and other connectivity issues - including soft connectivity such as customs, border crossings and documentation - are adequately addressed in coordination with all key partners involved,” she said.
Garcia went on to add that the Port of Baku has the potential of becoming a key connectivity hub, but further developments are needed to increase its capacities.
“Caspian Sea crossing is often identified as one of the major bottlenecks along the Middle Corridor, due to shortage of vessels and difficult/unpredictable weather conditions. Higher degree of predictability is key to attract businesses to use this route. The EU has launched a study on sustainable transport connections in Central Asia, which will look for best possible ways to ensure sustainable connections from the South Caucasus onwards towards Asia, including through Azerbaijan. The study is expected to be finalised by May 2023,” said the EU Commission’s spokesperson.
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