Ankara’s envoy highlights Nakhchivan’s special place in Türkiye’s heart

Turkish Ambassador to Azerbaijan Birol Akgün has emphasized the profound spiritual and historical importance of Nakhchivan for Türkiye during his first official visit to the autonomous republic since assuming office in Baku.

Speaking to journalists during his visit, Ambassador Akgün highlighted Nakhchivan’s symbolic value, not only as the birthplace of Azerbaijan’s National Leader Heydar Aliyev, but also as a region long revered in Turkish history and diplomacy, Caliber.Az reports per local media.

“Nakhchivan is a land of special spiritual significance for us. It is the birthplace of the great leader Heydar Aliyev, as well as the only region that the great leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk called ‘Turkish Gate’ and which has a land border with Azerbaijan. That is why Nakhchivan has gone down in history as the place where the ‘Bridge of Hope’ was opened,” the ambassador stated.

Akgün also praised the substantial economic progress the region has achieved over the past three decades, positioning Nakhchivan as a dynamic and evolving part of the wider South Caucasus.

He underscored the strategic importance of the Zangezur Corridor, especially following the Second Karabakh War, noting its potential to transform regional connectivity and promote peace and cooperation.

“We wish that this corridor will become a connecting bridge ensuring peace and cooperation in the region and contribute to the strengthening of the Middle Corridor,” he said, referring to the broader transcontinental trade route linking East and West.

By Vafa Guliyeva