Armenia eyes exporting its products to Azerbaijan, minister says

Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan has indicated the possibility of exporting goods from Armenia to Azerbaijan.

He made the remarks speaking to journalists on December 28, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media.

According to Papoyan, the initiative involves both imports and exports. “We have received a competitive price from the Georgian Railway, so there are many opportunities. I believe that soon the Georgian and Azerbaijani sides will announce another successful deal, and we will confirm it,” he said.

When asked about the types of goods Armenia could offer Azerbaijan, Papoyan listed aluminium, livestock, fruits and vegetables, beverages, and textiles. The minister added that negotiations on the matter are ongoing.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have made significant progress toward normalization in 2025, following decades of conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. A key milestone came on August 8, when Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and President Ilham Aliyev, mediated by U.S. President Donald Trump, initialed a draft peace agreement and signed a joint declaration in Washington. The deal recognizes mutual sovereignty and territorial integrity based on the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, commits to opening communications, and includes the "Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity" (TRIPP)—a transit corridor through Armenia linking mainland Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave, with U.S. development rights.

Economic cooperation has emerged as a major confidence-building measure. In October, Azerbaijan lifted long-standing restrictions on cargo transit to Armenia, imposed since the early 1990s. This enabled rail shipments of grain from Russia and Kazakhstan to Armenia via Azerbaijan and Georgia in November.

A landmark step occurred in mid-December, when Azerbaijan exported its first petroleum products to Armenia in decades—approximately 1,220 tons of AI-95 gasoline produced by state oil company SOCAR, shipped by rail through Georgia. The deal followed a November 28 agreement between deputy prime ministers and was described by Armenian officials as a diversification effort to reduce reliance on Russian fuel. Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan welcomed it as evidence of "peace through trade."

By Khagan Isayev