The official inauguration ceremony of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway line was held today at the Akhalkalaki station in Georgia.
The event was attended by senior officials from Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Türkiye.
On May 18 in Baku, Minister of Digital Development and Transport of Azerbaijan Rashad Nabiyev and the Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia Mariam Kvrivishvili signed the Protocol of the 41st meeting of the Coordination Council for the rehabilitation, reconstruction, and construction of the railway section from Marabda to the border of Türkiye (Kartsakhi).
Georgian Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Tamar Ioseliani said the BTK railway line is of strategic importance for the region.
She noted that BTK is an important transport route linking Europe with Asia and, as a joint strategic project implemented by Georgia, Azerbaijan and Türkiye, creates additional opportunities for freight transportation in the region.
The deputy minister added that the BTK line had been operating in test mode since 2017, during which freight volumes had steadily increased.
"We are confident that, through joint efforts, we will be able to make this railway operate at full capacity. Large-scale restoration and reconstruction work has been carried out on the Marabda-Kartsakhi railway section," Tamar Ioseliani said.
