Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan To Receive Direct Railway Link With Turkey’s Kars, Marking A Milestone In South Caucasus Transport Development

Published on August 25, 2025

Azerbaijan and Turkey person officially launched nan building of a monumental railway task linking Kars successful Turkey to Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave, marking a important measurement toward enhancing location connectivity. This $2.8 cardinal venture, which includes a 224-kilometer railway line, is group to toggle shape nan carrier infrastructure betwixt nan 2 countries. Expected to easiness waste and acquisition and fortify ties, nan task is besides seen arsenic a cardinal constituent successful nan realization of nan Zangezur Corridor, a broader inaugural aimed astatine improving location practice and establishing a captious carrier way connecting Central Asia pinch Europe. The caller railway promises to reshape nan South Caucasus’ proscription network, fostering economical growth, power security, and cross-border tourism.

On Friday, Turkey officially launched nan building of a pivotal caller railway task that will link nan northeastern state of Kars successful Turkey pinch Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave. This railway is expected to beryllium a cornerstone successful shaping nan South Caucasus region’s early proscription web and holds important geopolitical and economical implications for nan region. The task was marked by a groundbreaking ceremonial successful Igdir, a state located successful eastbound Turkey, wherever officials and experts gathered to observe nan commencement of this eager proscription infrastructure.

The caller railway statement will span a full of 224 kilometers and is expected to costs an estimated 2.4 cardinal euros, which is astir \$2.8 billion. Once completed, it will see a wide scope of infrastructure to support modern railway operations, including 5 stations, 5 tunnels, 19 cut-and-cover tunnels, 10 bridges, 3 viaducts, 144 underpasses, 27 overpasses, and 480 culverts. The project’s standard reflects its value not only for proscription but besides for nan wider improvement of nan region’s infrastructure, providing a captious nexus betwixt Turkey and Azerbaijan.

The Zangezur Corridor, which Turkey and Azerbaijan person powerfully supported, intends to facilitate nan activity of equipment and group betwixt Central Asia and Europe. It will supply an replacement to different awesome waste and acquisition routes that often look congestion and delays, offering much businesslike entree for countries successful Central Asia to European markets. The railway is expected to alleviate bottlenecks successful world proviso chains, a problem that has go much evident successful caller years, peculiarly during nan COVID-19 pandemic erstwhile disruptions to proscription networks caused important delays and shortages.

In summation to improving logistics and proscription efficiency, nan Zangezur Corridor has nan imaginable to fortify nan power and carrier ties betwixt Turkey and Azerbaijan, arsenic good arsenic pinch different countries successful nan region. Energy information and nan improvement of power infrastructure are captious for some nations, and nan railway is apt to play a important domiciled successful facilitating nan transit of power resources specified arsenic oil, earthy gas, and different basal commodities. By offering a much nonstop and reliable way for power transportation, nan corridor could thief to diversify power supplies for European markets, which person been progressively focused connected securing alternatives to Russian power supplies amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.

The railway is besides expected to service arsenic a driver of economical maturation successful some Turkey and Azerbaijan, arsenic good arsenic successful nan broader South Caucasus region. The building and cognition of nan railway will create thousands of jobs, from engineering and building roles to operations and attraction positions erstwhile nan railway is up and running. Additionally, nan caller carrier nexus will promote accrued cross-border tourism, arsenic it will connection an easier and much convenient measurement for travelers to entree nan region’s rich | taste practice and earthy beauty. The imaginable for tourism improvement could person important economical benefits, attracting some location and world visitors to research nan historical sites, landscapes, and taste attractions of nan South Caucasus.

Moreover, nan Zangezur Corridor represents a broader imagination aimed astatine improving location practice and strengthening connectivity. The task brings together not only Turkey and Azerbaijan but besides different countries successful nan region, including Armenia, Georgia, and Iran, arsenic it intends to amended connectivity crossed nan South Caucasus and beyond. The railway’s occurrence could group nan shape for early collaborative efforts successful infrastructure development, paving nan measurement for different awesome projects that could further merge nan region’s economies and fortify ties betwixt nan countries involved.

The Zangezur Corridor is besides portion of a larger geopolitical strategy by some Turkey and Azerbaijan to found stronger economical and governmental links pinch Central Asia and Europe. As Turkey seeks to summation its domiciled arsenic a location leader and a hub for waste and acquisition and transport, nan railway plays a captious portion successful enhancing its position arsenic a cardinal transit state for equipment and power resources moving betwixt East and West.

Azerbaijan and Turkey person kicked disconnected nan building of a transformative $2.8 cardinal railway task linking Kars to Nakhchivan, strengthening location connectivity and paving nan measurement for nan Zangezur Corridor. This caller carrier nexus is group to heighten trade, power security, and cross-border collaboration.

The building of this caller railway is simply a important measurement guardant successful Turkey’s efforts to amended location connectivity and fortify its ties pinch Azerbaijan. The task not only promises to facilitate waste and acquisition and carrier crossed nan region but besides opens nan doorway to caller opportunities for economical development, power security, and tourism. With an estimated costs of 2.4 cardinal euros, nan railway is expected to beryllium a semipermanent finance that will use nan full South Caucasus region, improving its domiciled successful world proviso chains and supporting further practice betwixt Turkey, Azerbaijan, and their location partners. As nan Zangezur Corridor takes shape, it will apt go an basal nexus successful nan increasing web of proscription routes that link Central Asia pinch Europe.