Turkey, Azerbaijan ink new economic cooperation pact

(MENAFN) Türkiye and Azerbaijan formalized their economic collaboration on Monday by signing the 12th Joint Economic Commission (JEC) protocol in Baku, introducing a 110-point action plan spanning energy, trade, investments, and tourism. The agreement was signed by Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz and Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ali Asadov.

Yilmaz recalled the Shusha Declaration of June 15, 2021, which elevated bilateral relations to a strategic alliance, noting that the current cooperation seeks to enhance prosperity across the Turkic world through joint activities under the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) at both regional and international levels. He said the JEC serves as a roadmap to convert strategic goals into concrete projects, ensuring tangible results across multiple sectors.

Highlighting past achievements, Yilmaz said that 93 of the 120 items from the 11th JEC action plan in 2024 were completed, achieving a 78% success rate. He stressed that this foundation allows both countries to pursue new initiatives in areas such as trade, investments, contracting, industry, transportation, energy, education, and agriculture.

The new 110-item action plan includes concrete measures, such as exploring a Free Trade Agreement, developing joint investment and service trade in third countries, forming a Joint Working Group to integrate Azerbaijan into the New Computerized Transit System, establishing joint industrial training centers, and signing cooperation agreements in agriculture and energy projects. Programs for experience-sharing across health, tourism, banking, and public procurement are also included. Yilmaz emphasized that institutions must take ownership of the goals and implement assigned actions before the next JEC meeting.

Türkiye’s trade with Azerbaijan reached $8 billion last year, Yilmaz noted, with a medium-term target of $15 billion highlighting untapped potential. He stressed that the ultimate objective is to achieve joint production, investment, and project development capacities in third countries while removing bureaucratic obstacles and speeding up customs and logistics processes.

In terms of investment, Türkiye has invested $18 billion in Azerbaijan, while Azerbaijani investments in Türkiye total $21 billion. Yilmaz emphasized that both countries should act as strategic energy centers rather than merely serving as transit points, calling for diversified energy cooperation including renewables and the rapid implementation of the planned energy corridor through Nakhchivan.

Concrete indicators of deepening cooperation include closer collaboration between Turkish Petroleum (TPAO) and Azerbaijan’s SOCAR, the opening of the Igdir-Nakhchivan Natural Gas Pipeline, joint third-country projects under BOTAS, TPAO, and SOCAR, and initiatives such as the Green Electricity Transmission and Trade Project and the Türkiye-Azerbaijan Nakhchivan Interconnection Project.

Yilmaz also highlighted the strategic importance of the Middle Corridor, referring to it as the “Silk Road of the 21st century,” which strengthens the East-West trade route via the Caspian Sea. He stressed that both countries must transform potential into a sustainable logistics architecture, laying the keystones of the Modern Silk Road and shaping trade from China to Europe through their enduring alliance.

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