Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan commended Wednesday that the Middle Corridor is the most reliable, swift and cost-effective trade route connecting Asia and Europe.
"The most reliable, fastest and economical route between Asia and Europe is the Central Asia-Caspian Sea-South Caucasus-Türkiye corridor," Fidan said in a joint news conference with his Azerbaijani and Uzbek counterparts.
Fidan noted that supply chains worldwide have been disrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and the recent developments in the Middle East.
Underlining that the largest trade volume in the world takes place between Asia and Europe, Fidan said, "Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan are at the heart of this route.”
The news conference was held following the second trilateral meeting of Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan’s ministries of foreign affairs, transport and trade.
Fidan said that the meeting focused on infrastructure projects and joint activities related to the Middle Corridor.
"We discussed customs practices and the harmonization of regulations. We also evaluated steps to expand the use of electronic services," he said.
"Additionally, we discussed steps to gradually remove barriers to trade,” Fidan added.
Fidan also announced that the Ankara Declaration was signed at the end of the trilateral meeting.
Fidan underlined that the declaration recorded steps to be taken in the areas of trade, investment, logistics and transit transportation and that a decision was made to accelerate infrastructure projects.
Fidan said there was an agreement to encourage investments in priority sectors, adding that an action plan and a road map for future steps were outlined in the annex to the declaration.
