Alexei Overchuk, deputy prime minister of Russia, was in Baku today (13 July) to meet with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev. The men discussed the progress of the trilateral working group – co-chaired by Overchuk alongside the deputy prime ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan – tasked with the unblocking economic and transport links in the region following last year’s 44-day war.
Alongside reportedly discussing issues related to the trilateral working group, the men discussed Russia-Azerbaijan bilateral relations, noting with satisfaction the increase in trade turnover and exports of Azerbaijani agricultural products to Russia. They are also said to have discussed improving the operation of border checkpoints on the Russia-Azerbaijan border, and hailed the increase of transit through the North-South Transport Corridor.
The trilateral working group was formed by an agreement between the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia on 11 January 2021 in Moscow. The main priority of the trilateral working group is the restoration of road and rail links in the region, as was stipulated by the 10 November 2020 tripartite agreement which ended last year's war.