BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 29. Baku and Russia’s Astrakhan region have discussed the development of freight traffic along the International North-South Transport Corridor.
This was reflected in the statement of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Russia.
According to the embassy, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Russia Rahman Mustafayev visited the Astrakhan region and met with Governor Igor Babushkin.
The sides discussed the current state and prospects for cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Astrakhan region in the trade, economic, cultural and transport sectors. “Particular attention was paid to the development of freight traffic between the Astrakhan region and Azerbaijan along the International North-South Transport Corridor,” the embassy said.
The meeting also addressed cooperation in the humanitarian sphere. Igor Babushkin proposed considering the possibility of holding joint opera gala concerts, as well as staging open-air operas at the venue in front of the Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, with the participation of the Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theater named after M.F. Akhundov and the Astrakhan State Opera and Ballet Theater, the embassy said.
“The Republic of Azerbaijan is our most important partner in the Caspian region. I intend to continue making every effort to further strengthen comprehensive cooperation,” Igor Babushkin said.
According to the embassy, at the governor’s invitation, Rahman Mustafayev attended as an honorary guest the premiere of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera “The Tale of Tsar Saltan,” staged by the Astrakhan State Opera and Ballet Theater.
“The premiere was held as part of the ‘Russian Operas in the Astrakhan Kremlin’ project, which is one of the region’s cultural initiatives,” the embassy said.
In addition, the Azerbaijani diplomat visited facilities in Astrakhan built by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, including a monument to Grand Prince Vladimir the Great, Equal-to-the-Apostles, as well as infrastructure facilities on Bakinskaya Street, the embassy said.
Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Transport’s press service told Trend, joint transport and logistics projects with Azerbaijan are of strategic importance for Russia.
“Over the long term, we are increasing the volume of freight traffic by rail and road, while also constructing and modernizing transport infrastructure,” the ministry said.
Promising areas of cooperation include cruise shipping on the Caspian Sea and the introduction of electronic international transport waybills (e-CMR). The ministry also emphasized that the introduction of unified tariffs along the North-South International Transport Corridor would increase freight volumes by reducing transportation costs.
The introduction of unified through rates is expected to lower transport costs, eliminate price disparities along individual sections of the route and make the corridor more attractive to shippers by offering predictable and competitive tariffs.
“This initiative is part of broader efforts to streamline border-crossing procedures and establish an effective mechanism for managing freight flows. A special trilateral working group on road transport, established following a meeting of representatives of Azerbaijan, Iran and Russia, is tasked with addressing a range of issues that currently constrain freight traffic along the Russia-Azerbaijan-Iran route.
The first meeting of the Russian-Azerbaijani-Iranian technical working group was held on October 29, 2025. The meeting addressed the development of road freight transportation along the entire length of the North-South International Transport Corridor,” the ministry’s press service said.
