By signing an agreement on air transport, Montenegro and the Republic of Azerbaijan are creating a basis for strengthening bilateral relations, but also for strengthening economic cooperation, was the conclusion after the meeting of the Deputy Prime Minister for Regional Development and Minister of Capital Investments, Ervin Ibrahimović, and his colleague, the Minister of Transport and Digital Development in the Government of the Republic Azerbaijan Rashad Nabiyeva.
The agreement represents an important step towards the opening of new markets and opportunities for easier accessibility of Montenegro to tourists from both Azerbaijan and other countries of the region.
“Geopolitical events and changes point us to the need to open new markets, I believe that this agreement represents an additional impulse to the tourism economy of Montenegro. I remind you that our country has so far signed agreements on air transport cooperation with the countries of the Asian continent with the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, an agreement with Kuwait has been initialed, and the start of negotiations with Georgia is also expected. Our task is to make Montenegro accessible to tourists from the Asian market, but also to strengthen bilateral and economic relations with these countries”, said Ibrahimović during the meeting.
As Minister Nabiyev emphasized, the intention of the Azerbaijani Government is for the airport in Baku to be well connected with all neighboring countries and to serve as a transit zone. The first direct flights between Montenegro and Azerbaijan were realized in 2019, during the summer tourist season, and a greater number of tourists from Azerbaijan and neighboring countries visited our country.
Ibrahimović emphasized that the signing of the agreement creates the conditions for the opening of a direct line throughout the year, which would enable a better connection both for tourists and for the economic communities of the two countries.
The Interlocutors agreed that the construction of the Porto Novi tourist complex, which, according to Minister Nabiyev, is the largest investment in tourism that Azerbaijan has made in the world, is a significant step in strengthening economic relations between the two countries.
Nabiyev added that construction companies from Azerbaijan are already successfully operating in the Balkans and that there is interest in projects that our country intends to implement in the future. He also pointed out that Azerbaijan is rapidly working to improve the quality of the transport infrastructure in the country, with a special emphasis on the development of airports and railway traffic.
Ibrahimović presented the capital projects that Montenegro is currently realizing and which are planned in the coming period, and which may be interesting for foreign investments, in the first place, the continuation of the implementation of the next sections of the Bar-Boljare highway and the continuation of the modernization of the Bar-Boljare railway.
In addition, he presented the development potential of the Port of Bar, but also of the northern region of Montenegro, where the construction of cable cars and significant investments in ski centers open up opportunities for the construction of hotel complexes.
“The potentials of the north of Montenegro have not been valorized to their full capacity, and our intention is to develop first the tourism economy, but also related economic branches, such as, for example, the production of organic and halal food. “Montenegro is a tourist destination and our efforts will be aimed at attracting foreign capital, with a focus on development projects in the north of the country,” said Ibrahimović.
He also met with the representatives of Azal Azal Airline, which is in the phase of transformation and modernization of its fleet with the aim of becoming a leader in this field in the countries of the region.
In this sense, the development strategy until 2030 envisages the opening of lines to destinations both to EU countries and to Asia, that is, the creation of a transfer zone for EU countries and the Asian region was emphasized during the meeting.
The line between Montenegro and Azerbaijan, which is implemented during the summer season, was very successful, the interlocutors agreed, and conditions should be created for the opening of a regular line throughout the year.
The Minister of Capital Investments also initiated the possibility of cooperation between AZAL and Air Montenegro on the realization of this direct line, which will certainly be discussed in more detail by the management representatives of the two companies.
