On May 5, Amin Taraffo, Advisor to the Minister of Roads and Urban Development of Iran, announced that Iran proposed establishing an Iran-Azerbaijan-Georgia transit corridor within the framework of TRACECA, a move reportedly welcomed by Azerbaijani officials.
Taraffo indicated that the proposal was presented during the recent visit of Farzaneh Sadegh, Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development, to Azerbaijan and received approval from the Azerbaijani side. He added that this year, the Iranian minister would assume the chairmanship of the TRACECA Intergovernmental Commission.
Taraffo further revealed that an agreement on a roadmap aimed at boosting transit traffic volumes to 20 million tons annually might be signed between Iran and Turkmenistan. “The document is expected to be signed during the meeting of the Joint Commission on Economic Cooperation of Iran and Turkmenistan on May 17–19,” he stated.
Additionally, Taraffo emphasized that between March 21, 2025, and March 20, 2026, according to the Iranian calendar, plans are in place to transport 3 million tons of cargo along the eastern route of the North-South Corridor passing through Iran’s territory.
Notably, TRACECA (Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia) is an international transport program aimed at fostering the development of a multimodal transport corridor between Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. Established in 1993, TRACECA’s primary goal is to create a comprehensive transport network connecting Europe to Central Asia, facilitating the movement of goods and passengers across a vast geographical area. TRACECA involves countries including Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, with the European Union playing a key role in its development.