EC President announces major Middle Corridor project linking South Caucasus and Central Asia to EU market

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced a new international connectivity initiative to link the South Caucasus and Central Asia directly to the European market via the Middle Corridor.

Delivering her annual State of the European Union address to the European Parliament, Ursula von der Leyen highlighted the EU’s push to expand global trade, citing new agreements signed this year with India, Mercosur, Mexico, Australia, and Indonesia.

According to the EC President, the EU aims to diversify routes, triple trade flows, and cut freight transit times by 2030.

“We now have trade deals in place with more than eighty countries, more than anyone else in the world. And business is asking us for more. I can announce today a new international connectivity project. It will link the South Caucasus and Central Asia directly to the European market, what we call the Middle Corridor.

Through Global Gateway, we will aim to crowd in up to twelve billion euros in public and private investment. Our goal is to diversify routes, triple trade flows, and slash freight transit times by 2030. To make this a reality, we will organise a regional connectivity summit with Bulgaria’s Prime Minister.

The Middle Corridor, a trade route spanning the Black Sea, the Caucasus, and the Caspian Sea, has gained increasing strategic importance as Europe seeks to diversify trade routes and strengthen supply chain resilience linking Europe and Asia,” Ursula von der Leyen stated.