Azerbaijan invites Europe to join South Caucasus projects

Azerbaijan has invited European countries to join new infrastructure projects in the South Caucasus following U.S. involvement, presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the 6th Caspian Business Forum in New York, Hajiyev said the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict was over and "durable peace" now prevails in the region. He thanked President Donald Trump and his administration for their role in brokering the settlement.

He said freight volumes along the Middle Corridor are expected to exceed 50 million tonnes with the help of additional Azerbaijani investment. "The capacity of Baku port is 25 million tonnes annually, and expansion work is under way," he said.

Hajiyev added that a railway from Baku to Zangilan and the Armenian border, launched in 2020, is set for completion by mid-2026. He said U.S. partners are engaged in work on a 42-km section of the Zangezur corridor inside Armenia, and invited European countries to join the effort.