Azerbaijan intensifies work on construction of railway stretching to Zangezur corridor

By Ruslan Rehimov

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AA) - Azerbaijan continues intensively the construction of a railway that will pass through the Zangezur corridor.

Once constructed, the corridor will connect Azerbaijan's western provinces and Nakhchivan via Armenia, further stretching to China, Central Asia, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus and Türkiye.

After the 2nd Karabakh War in November 2020, the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia signed an agreement to open a railway between Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan, a land-locked autonomous republic located west of Baku.

In the latest meeting on May 25, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Moscow decided to ask their deputy prime ministers to smooth out the technical issues on the project.

Before the trilateral meeting, Anadolu’s cameras captured the work carried out on the railway network in Azerbaijan, extending to the Zangezur corridor.

Azerbaijan State Railways is carrying out the construction of the Horadiz-Agbend line, which stretches from the town of Horadiz in Fuzuli province to the Armenian border, and the town of Agbend in Zangilan province. Turkish companies are also actively involved in the construction of the line.

On the Horadiz-Agbend line, 78% of the project design and 38% of the construction has been completed and 64 kilometers (39.7 miles) of rails have been laid together with the side roads. The 30-meter area on both sides of the line was cleared of mines.

- Horadiz-Agbend line to be completed in 2024

Kenan Rzayev, head of the Project Design Department of the Azerbaijan Railways Construction Control Administration, told Anadolu that the mines laid by the Armenian forces during the occupation and the difficult terrain caused some difficulties in the construction of the line, but these difficulties were overcome.

“Construction work continues rapidly. All difficulties were solved with the support of Turkish companies. The line is expected to be completed in the first six months of 2024,” he added.

Azerbaijan Railways Spokesperson Senuber Nezerova said Azerbaijan's longest railway bridge was built on the Horadiz-Agbend railway line.

"This 13-span, 418-meter bridge made history as Azerbaijan's longest railway bridge," said Nezerova.

- New link between Türkiye and Azerbaijan: Zangezur Corridor

The railway line from Baku to the town of Horadiz is already working. Some parts of this line from Horadiz to the Armenian border were destroyed during the Armenian occupation, and some parts were flooded by the dam. Therefore, a new 166-km (103-mi) railway line will be built from Horadiz to Ordubad in Nakhchivan.

The construction of the 43-km (26.7-mi) section of the line, which will pass from the Armenian part of the line through the Zangezur region, will begin after the final agreement between Yerevan and Baku is reached.

The 158-km (98-mi) line from Ordubad to the Velidag Station located in the north of Nakhchivan, close to Türkiye, Armenia and Iran, will be extensively repaired. The line, which ends in Velidag, will be extended 14 km (8.6 mi) up to the Armenian border.

Türkiye and Azerbaijan also have a railway line project to connect Kars to Nakhchivan.

When all these projects are finished, a new transport connection will be established between Türkiye and Azerbaijan. At the same time, uninterrupted land and railway communication will be established between Türkiye and Russia via Azerbaijan.​​​​​​​