From September 9 to 11, the BLACK AND CASPIAN FREIGHT FORUM 2025: CORRIDORS, CARGOS, INFRASTRUCTURE was held in Azerbaijan at the Four Seasons Hotel Baku. It was an international event that brought together 180 participants from 18 countries to discuss key trends in transport, logistics and international freight transportation.
On September 9, 2025, an event was held at the Absheron Logistics Center to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the launch of the China (Zhejiang)–Europe Railway Express route via the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), as well as the arrival of the Yiwu (China)–Baku train. At the ceremony, representatives of Zhejiang Province, the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of Azerbaijan, and the Chinese Embassy emphasized that the passage of the 237th block train, comprising 100 containers, demonstrates Azerbaijan’s growing role as a key transit hub connecting Europe and Asia.
The Port of Baku, which is part of Azerbaijan Railways CJSC and is part of the AZCON holding, handled about 70 thousand TEU in the first eight months of 2025. This figure is 48% higher than the same period last year, when 47.1 thousand TEU were handled.
According to the head of the department of the Center for Strategic Studies of the Turkish Foreign Ministry, Turhan Dilmas, the capacity of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway line will more than triple by 2034 – from the current 5 million to 17 million tons of cargo per year.
Turkish Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said that the Zangezur Corridor could bring in 147.6 billion liras (about 4.1 billion euros) over the next 30 years. According to him, up to 15 million tons of cargo could be transported along the route annually.
Kazakhstan is actively expanding international transport routes as part of the instructions of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev. Particular attention is paid to the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), which is becoming a key link in ensuring transit between Asia and Europe.
JSC KTZ Express is launching a large-scale project to build six modern sea vessels that will form the basis for developing the national container fleet and increasing the capacity of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR). The new vessels will be adapted to the specific features of the Caspian Sea and inland waterways, which will ensure predictability of transit times and stability of multimodal transportation.
On August 22, a ceremony was held in the city of Igdir to mark the start of construction of the Kars-Dilucu railway line, which will connect Turkey with the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. The event was attended by Turkish Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu.
The countries participating in the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) have agreed on a number of innovations aimed at simplifying transportation. In 2025, it is planned to introduce a single transit cargo document for all shipments along the route, as well as optimize customs procedures. These steps are enshrined in the Roadmap for 2025, prepared taking into account the “International Trade” indicator in the World Bank Group “Business Ready” report.
Belgorod-Dnistrovsky Sea Port signed a memorandum of cooperation with Batumi International Container Terminals LLC (BICT), which manages container, ferry and general terminals in the port of Batumi (Georgia). This is the second such document of the Ukrainian enterprise within the framework of the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR, or “Middle Corridor”), said Oksana Kiktenko, Director of the SE.
