Kazakhstan should implement two important projects with Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan-Kazakhstan relations have entered the stage of strategic alliance. The visit of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to Kazakhstan on April 10 was aimed at further strengthening this alliance. President of Kazakhstan Kasim-Jomart Tokayev and President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a joint statement and protocol on the establishment of the Supreme Interstate Council in Astana. This Council should work on projects that accelerate the development of bilateral relations.

The current volume of trade between the two countries is 500 million dollars. It is planned to double the trade turnover to 1 billion dollars. For this, it is important to implement large projects between the two states. There is great potential for mutually beneficial cooperation in the field of agriculture. Last year, the volume of bilateral trade turnover of agricultural products increased 3 times and amounted to 146 million dollars.

The two projects will further strengthen geostrategic relations between Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.

The first project oil transportation. Kazakhstan wants to increase the volume of oil exported through Azerbaijan. Since this year, Kazakh oil has been transported to world markets through Azerbaijan. Kazakh oil is transported by tankers across the Caspian Sea to the Sangachal terminal, and from there to the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. Astana's goal is clear, it wants to diversify the transportation of oil to world markets. Kazakhstan has 2 percent of the world's oil reserves and produces 2 million barrels of oil per day. 80 percent of this oil is delivered from Russian territory to Novorossiysk port on the Black Sea. But this route is not reliable. Accidents often occur on the pipeline passing through Russia, and because of this, the transportation of Kazakh oil is stopped. At this time, the income of Kazakhstan decreases. In a number of cases, Russia blocks the transportation of Kazakh oil for political reasons. Astana does not support Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. Russia has blocked the transportation of oil from Kazakhstan several times after starting the war of aggression against Ukraine.

One of the main buyers of Kazakh oil is China. However, the constant supply of oil to this country depends on the level of Kazakhstan-China relations. In a number of cases, there are interruptions in the transportation of the two countries. For example, China limited its import-export operations with Kazakhstan for some time. China banned the entry of vehicles on the border with Kazakhstan. Astana fears that this tension may have a negative impact on the transportation of oil to China. Therefore, in the political circles of Kazakhstan, they believe that the most fertile way of stable transportation of oil to world markets is through Azerbaijan.

One of the main goals of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili's visit to Azerbaijan on April 7 was related to the transportation of Kazakh oil. Azerbaijan proposed to Kazakhstan to transport 5 million tons of oil through the Baku-Supsa pipeline in 2023. The oil will be supplied from the huge Kashagan field on the Kazakh shelf of the Caspian Sea. It was necessary to agree on this issue with Georgia. Increasing the volume of Kazakhstan's oil transportation meets the interests of Georgia as well as Azerbaijan. In total, 6.5 million tons of Kazakh oil transported via Azerbaijan and Georgia are planned.

The second project It is the Middle Corridor. This project connects Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. In order for the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route to work at full capacity, it is necessary to improve logistics services between the two countries, create joint transport operators, modernize technical and tariff conditions, and eliminate administrative obstacles. There is a Roadmap for the development and operation of the Middle Corridor route for 2022-2027. Stable and prompt delivery of goods in the East-West direction should be ensured through this route.

"Atlas" Research Center