Georgian officials highlight importance of Middle Corridor, joint connectivity projects at Tbilisi Silk Road Forum

Georgian officials on Thursday highlighted the importance of the Middle Corridor, a logistics route connecting Central Asia and China to Europe via the South Caucasus, as well as joint connectivity projects and efforts to further strengthen interstate trade and economic cooperation at panel discussions of the ongoing Tbilisi Silk Road Forum. 

In his remarks, Levan Davitashvili, the Georgian Economy Minister and Vice Prime Minister, said the prospects to develop the route gave grounds for “great optimism despite existing challenges”, and pointed to the engagement of a “number of states” in the project and the use of “various types of transport”, including railway and naval. 

Many stakeholders are also present from the private sector and therefore coordination in the work process should be a matter of top priority”, he said, also hailing the importance of the route as an “international connector” that he noted could develop “almost all sectors of economy” for the states involved. 

In his comments, Rashad Nabiyev, the Azerbaijani Transport Minister, claimed the route could create “many advantages”, noting it was “safer than the northern route and faster than the ocean route”. 

He stressed related agencies of participating states had been “communicating effectively” over the development of the route, and said the Corridor could further strengthen connections between the countries of the South Caucasus. 

I can say that last year, my colleagues made a lot of effort to understand exactly where the challenges of the Middle Corridor are, and we signed an important document, an action plan”, the Azerbaijani official said. 

Genadi Arveladze, the Deputy Economy Minister of Georgia, said the topics discussed during the panel discussions, including the prospects of the Middle Corridor route, could further increase the importance of Georgia as a regional transport and connectivity hub. 

He noted the discussions involved on how to make trade between states and regions “more liberal” and eliminate both tariff and non-tariff barriers that hindered trade between countries, and also highlighted the importance of tourism and energy security, which he said had been “in particular focus” on the backdrop of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. 

Speaking at the tourism panel discussion, Mariam Kvrivishvili, the Deputy Economy Minister of Georgia, said her country was “very competitive” in the world tourism market due to its “authenticity, people and hospitality".

Zurab Pololikashvili, the Secretary-General of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, said his organisation planned the opening of an UNWTO academy in Tbilisi with the Georgian Government. 

There is great demand for tourism education in Georgia, and it is very favourable to invest in Georgia in this direction”, he said. 

The meeting held on the sidelines of the international event also discussed economy, trade and connectivity. 

While reviewing the prospects of the Middle Corridor with Davitashvili, Ilkhom Makhkamov, the Uzbek Transport Minister, said his Government was interested in increasing cargo turnover in the route, and also expressed interest in the logistics sector of Georgia, the Georgian Economy Ministry said. 

The sides also discussed cooperation in bilateral trade, tourism, airline and HoReCa sector as well as financial services. 

Davitashvili and Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, the Trade Minister of the United Arab Emirates, highlighted the importance of the free trade agreement between their countries, which they said would cover trade in goods, rules of origin and procedures of origin, customs administration and trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers and protective measures in trade. 

The officials said trade turnover between the states had increased by 64 percent in the first nine months of this year, while exports had risen by 60 percent in the reported period. 

In a meeting with the Georgian Minister, Tomislav Momirović, the Minister of Domestic and Foreign Trade of Serbia, said the volume of trade between the states had increased by 152 percent and exports by 421 percent last year, while the trade turnover between the countries had increased by 72 percent and exports by 32 percent in the first nine months of this year. 

The officials agreed to further develop trade and economic ties due to their “great potential”, the Georgian Economy Ministry said. 

In his comments on the Forum, which on Thursday brought together more than 2,000 delegates from 63 foreign states, Aleksandre Khvtisiashvili, the Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister, said the event - initiated by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili in 2015 - was an “opportunity” for Tbilisi to highlight its reforms, achieved results and future plans. 

The fourth edition of the Forum will end later on Friday.