BAKU, July 3. /Dunyo IA/.  Ilgar Velizade, Head of the “South Caucasus” Club of Political Scientists, political scientist and analyst, commented for the Dunyo Information Agency on the state visit of the President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, to Georgia, which commenced on July 2^nd:

-  The first state visit of the President of Uzbekistan to Georgia in the more than thirty-year history of diplomatic relations has every reason to become a landmark event in the history of bilateral ties.

Its scale extends far beyond the bilateral agenda. In essence, it marks the beginning of a new stage in forging a unified space of transport, trade, and economic connectivity between Central Asia and the South Caucasus.

Visit takes place at a time when the Middle Corridor has definitively transformed from a regional infrastructure project into one of the key elements of the shifting architecture of Eurasian logistics.

The military actions in Ukraine, ongoing instability in the Middle East, risks to traditional maritime routes, and the forced diversification of global trade are prompting major external players to seek alternative freight delivery routes between Europe and Asia. For this very reason, in recent years, the European Union, China, Turkey, the nations of Central Asia and international financial institutions have all demonstrated growing interest in the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route.

For landlocked Uzbekistan, the development of routes via the South Caucasus acquires strategic significance. Tashkent seeks to diversify its export and import logistics chains, reduce dependence on isolated transit routes, and establish itself as a key participant in the emerging Eurasian transport connections.

In this context, Azerbaijan, followed by Georgia, is envisioned as a critical link securing the access of Uzbek cargo to the Black Sea ports and onwards to European markets.

From this perspective, the visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Georgia and the agreements anticipated to be reached as a result should be viewed as a vital element of the new regional partnership system.

In fact, conditions are being created for the gradual construction of a relationship model that defines the principles of economic interaction, transport connectivity, and logistics across the expanse from the Black Sea to the Fergana Valley.

Tashkent, in its characteristic manner of proactive diplomacy, acts as a nation that proposes the agenda for cooperation. Uzbekistan seeks to actively participate in shaping new routes, advancing its own vision of regional connectivity, trade and transport integration, while fully taking into account the interests of all neighbours and partners.