Including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and an associate in Turkmenistan, the CIS is a Eurasian trade bloc that achieved about US$125 billion in multilateral trade in 2025, with an average GDP growth rate of approximately 4.7%. Key developments include new trade platforms (CIS Plus), focus on infrastructure like the CKU railway, and expansion of free trade agreements, especially for services, enhancing regional economic integration within Eurasia and beyond. Understand the CIS market for business. Get analysis on trade regulations, economic integration, and cross-border investment opportunities within this key post-Soviet economic zone.
Russia and Azerbaijan have signed a cargo transit cooperation agreement concerning mutual use of the International North-South Transport Corridor, according to Rashad Nabiyev, Azerbaijan’s Digital Development and Transport Minister. He stated on Saturday (December 21) that “We met with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Savelyev and Transport Minister Roman Starovoit during a visit to Moscow. […]
Belarus’s Belavia Airlines has launched regular flights from Minsk to Urumqi, the capital of northwest China’s Xinjiang Province. It is the largest and wealthiest city in Central Asia. The first flight had over 75% occupancy. The Urumqi-Minsk flight also delivered over three tonnes of cargo, mainly parts for Chinese-manufactured cars, along with the passengers. It […]
The Russian Ambassador to Tajikistan, Semyon Grigoriev, has said that the bilateral trade turnover between Russia and Tajikistan rose 18.4% year-on-year to around US$1.4 billion between January to September 2024. This implies an annual total turnover of about US$1.87 billion for the full year. Grigoriev said during an interview with Tajikistan’s National Information Agency that […]
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and CJSC Azerbaijan Railways have signed a loan agreement for US$131.5 million to complete the reconstruction of a 166-kilometer section of a double-track railway, including civil structures and railway crossings on the Sumgait-Yalama route, to the Azeri border with Russia. This loan is additional financing for the Railway Sector Development […]
The Caspian Sea region has a complex maritime transport infrastructure, with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran and Russian ports all involved in its development. Despite the fact that the Caspian Sea is essentially landlocked, several international transport corridors pass through it. Goods are in transit to Europe, the Caucasus, Turkiye, the Middle East, Central Asia, East […]
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The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, has been in Astana, Kazakhstan, meeting with the Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and the Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu. Following these meetings, Lavrov held a press conference during which he discussed several issues relating to a planned visit by President Putin to attend the Collective Security Treaty Organisation (CSTO), as […]
Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with the Chairman of the Khalk Maslakhaty (People’s Council) of Turkmenistan, and the countries former President, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov in Ashgabat on Friday (October 11). “Strategic partnership relations are developing successfully between Russia and Turkmenistan, and this is largely due to your efforts, as you have laid the foundations of […]
On October 8, the heads of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), currently chaired by Russia, met in Moscow . The leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are taking part in it. There is a Free Trade Agreement between CIS member countries, but the CIS FTA differs from the […]
The Russian President Vladimir Putin has met with visiting Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Moscow. The main focus of the meeting was the Azerbaijan-Armenia peace process, with both sides working on the final conclusion of a peace treaty. They signed regulations on the joint activity of Armenian-Azerbaijani border delimitation commissions on August 30, 2024. Both […]
The Russian President Vladimir Putin has met with visiting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Moscow, shortly after hosting Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev. The main focus of the meeting was the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process, with both sides working on the final conclusion of a peace treaty. They signed regulations on the joint activity of Armenian-Azerbaijani […]
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has held bilateral meetings with Sergey Shamba, the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Abkhazia. Abkhazia is a semi-recognised independent country that was formed in 1993. It had previously been a province of neighbouring Georgia, however following mass civil unrest and Georgian military action against ethnic Abkhazians, Russian troops were […]
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