Nakhchivan may become one of the key transport and logistics hubs of the region - OPINION

New horizons of development are opening up before Nakhchivan. In the future, the integration of not only transport infrastructure but also energy lines into the new system of connections can significantly strengthen the strategic importance of the autonomous republic.

Deputy Elchin Mirzabeyli, in a comment to BAKU.WS, stated that the prospect of expanding energy routes stretching from Central Asia to Azerbaijan, from there to Turkey, and further to European markets, allows Nakhchivan to occupy an important position in the transregional energy infrastructure as well.

According to him, in the future, transport, logistics, energy, and manufacturing in Nakhchivan can become key elements of a unified economic system that complement each other.

The deputy emphasized that at the foundation of all these processes lies the historic Victory achieved by Azerbaijan in 2020. In his opinion, the military victory created a new political reality in the region, and now the main task is to consolidate this reality through sustainable peace, economic cooperation, and the restoration of regional communications.

"In this sense, transport projects are not merely economic projects. They are instruments for consolidating political results at the institutional and economic level. Railways, highways, logistics centers, border checkpoints, and energy lines, on the one hand, expand economic ties, and on the other, create a new atmosphere of interdependence and cooperation in the region," E. Mirzabeyli stated.

The deputy believes that the thesis "President Ilham Aliyev won both the war and the peace" acquires special significance precisely in this context. According to him, it is not only about the military victory but also about transforming the political realities it created into sustainable results in the sphere of peace and economic cooperation.

E. Mirzabeyli also emphasized that President Ilham Aliyev's visit to Nakhchivan coincided with a special historical stage. He noted that Nakhchivan, which lived under blockade conditions for many years, now stands on the threshold of great geopolitical and economic opportunities.

"Nakhchivan, which was once portrayed as an isolated territory, in the future can become one of the key transport and logistics hubs of the region. This means a change in the regional role not only of Nakhchivan but of Azerbaijan as a whole," the deputy stated.

In his opinion, assessing Nakhchivan's new era merely as "breaking out of the blockade" is insufficient. The main prospect lies ahead — the transformation of the autonomous republic from an isolated territory into a regional hub.

The deputy noted that the new political reality that emerged thanks to the Victory in the Patriotic War is now being transformed into a long-term regional architecture through roads, railways, logistics centers, energy lines, and other economic projects.

"Nakhchivan, which yesterday was a symbol of blockade, tomorrow can become a space where roads, trade routes, and energy arteries connecting the region intersect. In this context, President Ilham Aliyev's visit to Nakhchivan can be viewed not simply as another business trip, but as a political expression of the beginning of a new stage in Nakhchivan's history," E. Mirzabeyli added.

Shahane Khankishiyeva