Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan: A New Stage of Alliance Interaction

**Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan: A New Stage of Alliance Interaction**

The state visit of the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, to Uzbekistan on August 23–24 became one of the most substantive episodes in the history of Azerbaijani-Uzbek relations. One of the main outcomes of the trip was the further strengthening of the institutional and economic foundation of the allied ties between the two states.

Just a few years ago, relations between Baku and Tashkent were defined primarily as a strategic partnership. Subsequently, the Supreme Interstate Council was established, the Treaty on Alliance Relations was signed in 2024, and during the current visit, Presidents Ilham Aliyev and Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed the Treaty on Eternal Friendship.

Alongside the consistent elevation of the political and legal status of relations, this path also reflects the rapid expansion of the very substance of Azerbaijani-Uzbek interaction.

In recent years, Baku and Tashkent have built an extensive system of cooperation mechanisms. The legal framework, which already exceeds 220 documents, was further expanded following the current visit. The Supreme Interstate Council, established in 2023, has become a key tool for defining strategic priorities, and its third meeting in Tashkent demonstrated that the parties are moving from formulating general goals to monitoring the implementation of specific projects.

In this context, the Treaty on Eternal Friendship is of particular importance, giving the already established allied relations a more long-term and comprehensive character.

The document records mutual respect for sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity, the obligation not to allow the use of the territory of one party against the interests of the other, and outlines a wide range of areas for practical cooperation — from trade, investment, energy, and transport to digitalization, the "green" economy, education, and culture.

This establishes a political and legal framework designed for the long-term continuity of bilateral interaction.

The package of documents signed following the negotiations is also indicative. It included a program to bring mutual trade turnover to 1 billion dollars by 2030, a practical action plan for implementing agreements in the fields of investment and trade, agreements on cooperation in the field of pensions, culture, and tourism, cooperation programs between the ministries of foreign affairs and justice for 2027–2028, as well as protocols on establishing sister-city relations between Urgench and Khankendi, Bukhara and Lachin, and Urgench and Nakhchivan. Thus, the alliance between the two countries has received concrete guidelines, deadlines, and implementation mechanisms.

The most notable changes have occurred in the economic sphere. In 2025, trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan grew more than threefold, reaching 795 million dollars. In addition, the structure of cooperation is gradually changing. A model based on mutual investments, industrial cooperation, and the implementation of joint projects is taking shape.

One of the main instruments of this process has been the Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Investment Company. By August, it had already approved eight projects with a total value of 500 million dollars, with another seven projects of almost the same value under consideration. Thus, the portfolio of this structure alone is actually approaching 1 billion dollars.

At the same time, the scale of the entire investment interaction is significantly broader. At the meeting of the Supreme Interstate Council, it was noted that the total portfolio of joint projects between the two countries already exceeds 5 billion dollars.

Political alliance is thus gaining an increasingly solid economic base, formed by mutual investments, joint ventures, and long-term commercial interests.

A vivid illustration of the developing cooperation was the projects launched by the presidents of the two countries directly during the visit.

One of the new directions was the expansion of ABB's presence in the banking market of Uzbekistan through a project with Davr Bank. A project for a gypsum production plant by the Matanat-A company was launched, and two STEAM schools of the Landau network were opened.

Simultaneously, foundations were laid for five new SOCAR filling stations, the Sea Breeze Uzbekistan tourist and residential complex, the Baku City residential complex, a silver-bearing ore processing enterprise, and new projects in the field of horticulture.

The combination of these initiatives shows that Azerbaijan's economic presence in Uzbekistan is becoming increasingly diversified and covers the banking sector, education, energy, construction, the mining industry, tourism, and agriculture.

For Azerbaijan, this opens up additional opportunities to expand its investment and corporate presence in one of the largest markets in Central Asia. For Uzbekistan, in turn, such interaction creates additional sources of capital, technology, and managerial expertise. Together, this contributes to the formation of a more stable and institutionalized model of economic partnership between the two countries.

The second strategic line of the current visit is related to transport. Despite the absence of a shared border, the development of trans-Caspian routes and the changing transport geography of Eurasia create new opportunities for deepening interaction between the two countries.

For Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan serves as an important transit link, providing access through the Caspian Sea and the South Caucasus to Turkey and European markets. In turn, for Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan is one of the key partners in Central Asia, expanding transport and economic connectivity with the region and further with China. In 2025, the volume of transit cargo transportation between the two countries reached 1.4 million tons.

One of the significant results of the Tashkent negotiations was the agreement to intensify cooperation in the transport and transit sector, including jointly developing the potential of the Trans-Caspian Corridor and accelerating the creation of a joint fleet in the Caspian Sea. In addition, the Uzbek side initiated the formation of a separate Uzbek-Azerbaijani transport corridor in the Caspian Sea with a single operator.

If these plans are implemented, transport cooperation between Baku and Tashkent will reach a qualitatively new level, implying not only more active use of the Middle Corridor but also the possibility of joint participation in managing individual links of the transport and logistics chain.

The construction of the China–Kyrgyzstan–Uzbekistan railway and its connection with the Middle Corridor is capable of generating an additional flow of goods from China through Central Asia to the Caspian Sea. In such a configuration, Uzbekistan strengthens its role as an important transport hub in Central Asia, and Azerbaijan as the western link connecting this flow with the South Caucasus, Turkey, and the European direction. Thus, a basis emerges for the formation of a common trans-regional economic axis.

Modern relations between Baku and Tashkent are developing in parallel with a major transformation of ties between Azerbaijan and Central Asia as a whole. In November 2025, Azerbaijan became a full participant in the Consultative Meetings of the Heads of State of Central Asia. Thus, the C5 format has actually turned into C6.

In this configuration, the Caspian Sea is increasingly becoming a space where common transport, energy, and investment interests are formed. Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan are among the most active participants in this process.

In particular, both countries advocate for the development of the Middle Corridor, expand cooperation in the field of energy and "green" energy, strengthen cooperation within the Organization of Turkic States, and simultaneously create bilateral financial and production mechanisms. Therefore, the alliance between Baku and Tashkent is becoming one of the connecting elements of the new architecture of cooperation between Central Asia, the Caspian, and the South Caucasus.

In addition to the political, economic, and institutional components, Azerbaijani-Uzbek relations have a solid social, cultural, and humanitarian foundation. The commonality of history, language, and traditions is today complemented by practical projects. The Mirzo Ulugbek School built by Uzbekistan in Fuzuli has become a symbol of the high level of mutual trust and solidarity. Educational exchanges are developing, days of culture and media forums are being held, and the network of sister cities is expanding.

During the current visit, this network was replenished with ties between Urgench and Khankendi and Nakhchivan, and Bukhara with Lachin. Also, the "Azerbaijan" park was laid out in New Tashkent.

Although such projects may seem less significant against the backdrop of multi-billion dollar investments and transport initiatives, it is they that strengthen the social stability of interstate relations.

The outcomes of the state visit demonstrate the transition of Azerbaijani-Uzbek relations to a new stage, in which the established political and institutional framework is consistently filled with deeper economic, transport, financial, and humanitarian content.

The Treaty on Eternal Friendship creates a long-term political and legal basis for bilateral relations, while the Supreme Interstate Council acts as the key institutional mechanism for their further coordination. The activities of the Azerbaijan-Uzbekistan Investment Company and the expansion of direct business participation strengthen the economic component of the alliance. Joint transport and logistics projects enhance the connectivity of the two countries in the wider Eurasian space, while cultural and humanitarian cooperation strengthens the social foundation of bilateral relations and ensures their long-term stability. The combination of these elements makes the current stage qualitatively different from previous ones.

The results of the latest state visit indicate that the high level of political trust between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan is consistently transforming into a more coherent economic and regional architecture of cooperation.