Azerbaijan at the centre of Europe’s strategic reorientation Prague bets on cooperation with Baku

Azerbaijan continues to host European leaders. In less than a month, our country was visited by the Prime Minister of Lithuania, the Presidents of Latvia and Ukraine, and today Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš arrived in Gabala. During the visit, a one-on-one meeting and expanded talks were held with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, followed by an Azerbaijan–Czech business forum and joint press statements by the two leaders.

Notably, this is already the second business forum organised by Azerbaijan with European states in recent days — the first was held with the participation of delegations from Azerbaijan and Latvia. The back-to-back organisation of such forums with two European countries demonstrates the strong attention the Old Continent is paying to economic cooperation with Azerbaijan.

Relations between Baku and Prague have traditionally developed in a stable manner, without serious crises. Now the two sides have an opportunity to give their cooperation new substance. In January–November 2025, bilateral trade reached $807 million, while Azerbaijan became the largest supplier of oil to the Czech Republic, accounting for 42 per cent of its market share.

An equally important area is gas. Following the entry of Azerbaijani gas into Central European markets, the Czech Republic may join the group of importers via the already operational Southern Gas Corridor and routes through Italy and Austria. This would mean Prague’s integration into Europe’s expanding energy system, where Baku’s role is steadily growing.

Supporting this view, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš stated during a joint press briefing with Ilham Aliyev that the Czech national energy operator ČEZ also intends to purchase natural gas from Azerbaijan. Noting that Azerbaijan is gradually increasing its gas production, Babiš said: “The CEO of the ČEZ company is here. He would, of course, be very pleased if he could sign a long-term contract with you for gas supply through ČEZ, which is one of the largest gas distribution companies.”

For Europe, Azerbaijan is also important as a transport hub of Eurasia. The Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline, the Southern Gas Corridor, and the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway have strengthened Europe’s connectivity with Central Asia and the Middle East.

Azerbaijan seeks to make full use of its geographical position between East and West, while Prague is interested in reliable raw material supply routes, new markets, and the logistics opportunities of the South Caucasus. Therefore, the current meeting is significant not only for the bilateral agenda but also for the broader architecture of Europe’s cooperation with the region.

At the same time, it should be noted that the economic dimension, while central, is not the only pillar in the prospective cooperation between Azerbaijan and European countries. An additional layer of significance to the Czech Prime Minister’s visit is provided by the Military Cooperation Plan for 2026, signed just three days earlier by representatives of the defence ministries of Azerbaijan and the Czech Republic.

The growing role of Azerbaijan was clearly reflected today by the Czech Prime Minister, who stated: “I can declare here that Azerbaijan is a strategic partner of the Czech Republic. For this reason, I am pleased that our relations are also built on friendship. It is clear that Azerbaijan is at the center of the world's attention. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy was here, and Giorgia Meloni will visit next. This simply demonstrates once again the importance of your beautiful country.”

The turbulence of global politics and the world economy is pushing European countries to seek partners that are favourably located geographically, have proven reliability in fulfilling agreements, and demonstrate strategic vision and effective governance. Azerbaijan, possessing all of these qualities, is emerging for Europe as a unique partner.