MINISTRY OF ECONOMY
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF GEORGIA

Within official visit to Kazakhstan, Mariam Kvrivishvili, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, held a meeting with Nurlan Sauranbayev, Minister of Transport of Kazakhstan.

The parties discussed priority areas of cooperation between the two countries in transport and logistics, as well as trade. The strategic cooperation between Georgia and Kazakhstan in developing international transport corridors between Europe and Asia was emphasized. It was noted that in 2024, nearly 1 million tons of cargo were transported by land transport and over 2,7 million tons by rail between the two countries, which once again confirms the sustainability of transport links between the countries.

The meeting focused on deepening cooperation in both land transportation, which has shown increasing dynamics in recent years, and the development of the Trans-Caspian transport route, the Middle Corridor. As Mariam Kvrivishvili stated, this corridor has special potential as a reliable and effective transit route between Europe and Asia.

“The Middle Corridor is an important component connecting Europe and Asia, whose development will contribute to both economic prosperity and stability in the region. This requires more coordination, investment, and joint efforts of the corridor’s participating countries to make the corridor more competitive,” – Mariam Kvrivishvili noted.

The parties also focused on the cooperation between Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan in developing container shipments from China to Europe and, for this purpose, the successful launch of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TMTM). It was noted that this route is currently actively used for container shipments by rail between China and Europe. The active role of the Kazakh side in the establishment of the joint venture “Middle Corridor Multimodal” in 2023 was emphasized, which further strengthens regional partnership and the significant prospects for the development of the transit direction. The main purpose of the joint venture are to provide “single window” services, guarantee shipment times and costs, and implement an agreed policy through the development of multimodal services for freight purposes on the China-Europe/Turkey-China routes.

The Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development informed the Kazakh side about the transport and logistics infrastructure projects currently underway through the government’s efforts. These include the Anaklia Deep Sea Port, the East-West Highway, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, railway modernization, etc.

During the meeting, the parties highlighted Kazakh investments in Georgia’s port and logistics sectors. The discussion also touched upon deepening cooperation in the aviation sector – currently, 55 flights per week between Georgia and Kazakhstan are approved for the summer navigation season.

At the end of the meeting, Mariam Kvrivishvili invited Kazakhstan’s Minister of Transport to the fifth Tbilisi Silk Road Forum, which will be held in Georgia’s capital on October 22-23.

Guram Guramishvili and Genadi Arveladze, Deputy Ministers of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia, as well as Lasha Abashidze, Director General of JSC Georgian Railway attended the meeting.