MOSCOW (AA) - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Kazakh Prime Minister Alikhan Smailov on Thursday stressed the importance of the development of the Middle Corridor, an international connectivity route.
At a meeting in Baku, the two officials marked the increase in the volume of shipments transported via the transport route, going from China via Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, and Georgia to Türkiye and European countries, the press service of the Azerbaijani president said in a statement.
"During the conversation, the prospects for the participation of friendly Kazakhstan companies in various projects in the territories of Azerbaijan liberated from occupation were discussed," it said.
Both officials praised the high level of bilateral relations, noting that connections between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan have great importance for regional cooperation.
"The president of Azerbaijan said that there is a great potential for further expansion of this cooperation, stressing that all this also serves to increase the volume of trade turnover, create additional business opportunities, implement large-scale projects in energy, transport, and other spheres," the statement said.
For his part, Alikhan Smailov pointed out that Azerbaijan is the most important trade and economic partner of Kazakhstan in the South Caucasus -- last year the volume of mutual trade increased by 40%, exceeding $460 million.