PM Pashinyan: Azerbaijani oil products en route to Armenia

A train carrying oil products of Azerbaijani origin has departed and is en route to Armenia, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said.

“Rolling stock carrying petroleum products manufactured in Azerbaijan has departed and is heading for Armenia,” Pashinyan said, Caliber.Az reports per Armenian media.

“I welcome this development. The trade is being carried out between private companies, but it is precisely the established peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan that has created the political conditions for this,” Pashinyan stated.

Earlier today, December 18, the first consignment of Azerbaijani petroleum products was reported to have been sent to Armenia from Baku’s Bilajari railway station. A total of 1,220 tonnes of AI-95 motor gasoline, loaded into 22 railcars, is being transported by a freight train operated by Azerbaijan Railways. The shipment is scheduled to arrive later in the evening at the Boyuk Kesik station, located in Azerbaijan’s Aghstafa district.

The train travels through Georgian territory, with Georgia waiving transit fees for this initial shipment as a goodwill gesture.  

The export follows an agreement reached on November 28, 2025, in Gabala between Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev and Armenian Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan. It builds on earlier steps, including Armenia's first imports of grain transiting Azerbaijan in November 2025.

The broader context is the 2025 peace process: In March, the sides finalised a draft peace treaty text. On August 8, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, mediated by U.S. President Donald Trump, initialled the agreement and signed a joint declaration in Washington, committing to end hostilities, establish diplomatic relations, and advance regional cooperation.

By Khagan Isayev