“The bilateral agreements recently signed in Azerbaijan hold unparalleled significance for Georgia's macroeconomic trajectory, serving as a fundamental pillar for national economic growth, energy security, and the expansion of the country's logistical transit architecture,” said Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze during a live broadcast on the "Imedi LIVE" television program, expressing his formal gratitude to the Government of Azerbaijan.
"The metrics clearly demonstrate that Georgia's operational role within the Middle Corridor is continuously expanding, mirroring the growing geopolitical relevance of the corridor itself. Since 2020, aggregate cargo transit volume along the Middle Corridor has surged sevenfold. It is imperative that we maximize the strategic utility of this infrastructure, and we are actively doing so. From this perspective, the treaties concluded in Azerbaijan are of historic importance. These multi-sector agreements are tightly integrated with the optimization of our national transit functions," the Prime Minister emphasized.
Elaborating on the strategic energy and transit frameworks, Kobakhidze noted: "We have finalized highly lucrative agreements concerning natural gas imports and transit capacity. Crucially, we secured highly competitive pricing structures and stable supply volumes, both of which are absolutely critical to sustaining Georgia's long-term energy independence. We owe our sincere appreciation to the Azerbaijani side. This was not merely a standard bureaucratic negotiation between two sovereign governments; it was a high-level dialogue between close strategic allies, yielding optimal consensus across all agenda items."
The Head of Government also addressed electricity integration and legacy infrastructure recovery: "Our agreements extend directly to the import and cross-border transit of electrical power, as well as the revitalization of the Baku-Tbilisi-Supsa oil pipeline, which had been offline for the past three years. This prolonged suspension cost our state treasury tens of millions of lari in lost potential revenue. Operations along this pipeline will be formally restored under highly favorable commercial terms."
"Regarding our rail networks, the modernized Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway link is slated to become fully operational by the end of this month. Simultaneously, bilateral passenger rail transport between Georgia and Azerbaijan has been officially reinstated. Collectively, these comprehensive agreements are structurally vital for accelerating our economic growth, guaranteeing our energy resilience, and locking in our status as a premier regional transit hub. I would like to once again thank our Azerbaijani partners for their enduring solidarity and strategic cooperation," the Prime Minister concluded.
