Tatyana Gracheva

Fresh questions about Tbilisi’s strategic direction and energy security appear in the frames of recently signed deals between Georgia and Azerbaijan.
Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed the deals following a meeting in Baku held on May 18. It happened just a few weeks after Aliyev’s visit to Tbilisi and his meeting with Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgia’s de facto ruler. They haven’t disclosed the full texts of the agreements, despite their political significance. As a result, the Georgian government is criticized for making decisions without sufficient transparency or regard for the country’s long-term energy independence.
As official statements report, the sides agreed to a 20-year inter-governmental framework governing electricity supply and transit, along with a 20-year extension of a 2003 gas-purchase agreement. According to the Georgian government, the purchase deal “guarantees the security of social gas supply.”
Also, the agreements include restoration of daily passenger rail service between Tbilisi and Baku after a six-year gap. The Georgian government also claimed that the new section of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway will become fully operational.
This deal will help Tbilisi stay relevant in trade discussions, while relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia improve. Another threat for Georgia is new transit routes like the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) corridor.
Nevertheless, Tbilisi’s energy-supply vulnerability and the country’s growing dependency on Russia provoke concerns due to the lack of transparency and shifting energy trends. Georgia has relied on Azerbaijani gas less over the past year. Meanwhile, it has surged imports from Russia, despite a significantly higher price of Russian gas.
According to economist and former National Bank president Roman Gotsiridze, the recent gas-supply agreement contradicts Georgia’s national interest. It looks like Georgia has given up its share of transit capacity in the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline to Azerbaijan for the next 20 years. Meanwlile, only through the old, worn-out Soviet-era Gazakh-Saguramo pipeline will provide gas to Georgia.
Also, Gotsiridze warned that importing gas from Russia will be the only alternative, as increasing gas consumption will make additional supplies from Azerbaijan physically impossible. Some critics sees in the pattern the reflection of a calculated trade-off by Ivanishvili and his Georgian Dream government. Its first aim is securing for Georgia a role in trade routes connecting Europe and Asia. Another aim is trying to claw back leverage with Western partners alienated by the government’s authoritarian turn.
As Kobakhidze pointed, transit and geopolitics are the government’s priority, not energy security.
NH Logistics GEO has been offering IOR Importer of Record and EOR Exporter of Record services since 2001 and is a market leader in Georgia and Eurasia, supporting many clients with their import/export shipments.

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According to Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, the country is increasing its diplomatic and economic presence in Africa. The continent is not an aid recipient, but an equal partner in food security, defense technologies, and the digitalization of public services.
As Sybiha said at the forum “Ukraine–Africa: Past, Present and Future of Relations” on Tuesday in Kyiv, Ukraine sees Africa not as an object of assistance, but as an equal and strong actor in global politics. Ukraine is coming to the continent as a partner and provider of ready-made, high-tech solutions. Africa needs strength, technology, and real presence, and Ukraine aims to provide them. Also, the foreign minister stated that mutual benefit must be at the center of relations in all areas.
The total number of Ukrainian diplomatic missions in Africa attained 18. There are plans to open an embassy in Zambia and a consulate general in Cape Town.
The concept of “three pillars” was outlined as a clear strategic framework titled “Ukraine — a Strategic Partner for Africa’s Sustainable Development 2063”.
The first pillar is the transformation of Ukraine’s role from a grain exporter into an architect and guarantor of food security. To achieve that, Ukraine offers modern agricultural technologies and participation in the modernization of port and railway infrastructure, construction of modern highways, and sustainable energy systems.
The second pillar is Ukraine’s unique experience in countering modern threats gained in real combat conditions. The country is ready to share expertise on the use and neutralization of drones, electronic warfare systems, and strengthening cybersecurity.
Sybiha stressed that Ukraine is eager to create a regional cyber alliance and a joint center with European colleagues and African partners.
The third pillar is Ukraine’s export-ready solutions for the digitalization of public services based on the Diia platform. The country proposes to consolidate Ukrainian universities and to train specialists together.
According to the foreign minister, relying exclusively on the resources of others means becoming dependent. Ukraine offers a concrete contribution to strengthening the self-sufficiency of African states to avoid dependence. He said that Africa is not only the recipient of charity or humanitarian subsidies. It deserves to be an equal partner in strategic, mutually beneficial and pragmatic relations. Ukraine intends to enter this market as a strong, reliable, and high-tech partner. The both sides are capable of building an entirely new space for security and development.
NH Logistics UKR has been offering IOR Importer of Record and EOR Exporter of Record services since 2001 and is a market leader in Ukraine and Eurasia, supporting many clients with their import/export shipments.

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Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the National Economy and Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister, Olexandr Mishchenko, discussed prospects for trade and economic cooperation with Serik Zhumangarin at a meeting on April 2.
The aim of the discussion was to restore bilateral trade between Astana and Kyiv, said the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry representative.
Before the war, trade between Kazakhstan and Ukraine reached approximately $5.5 billion annually, but has since declined sharply. Nevertheless, Kazakh data show that the situation has begun to improve. As the Ministry of National Economy reported, trade turnover between the two countries attained $415.8 million in 2025 (5.4% increase from $394.3 million in 2024). Ferroalloys, fertilizers, and rice are Kazakhstan’s main exports to Ukraine. Meanwhile, chocolate and other cocoa products, flour and confectionery, medicines, cheese, and cottage cheese represent imports from Ukraine.
Also, the range of goods traded is to be expanded by Astana and Kyiv. Other issues are investment, agriculture, logistics, and humanitarian cooperation.
As Mishchenko said, the countries also plan to strengthen cooperation in the energy sector and restore logistics chains. Kazakh exports mainly reached Europe through Ukraine until 2022. After that, they needed alternative corridors, including routes across the Caspian and South Caucasus. They are longer, more complex, and often more expensive.
To find the solution, Mishchenko accompanied a large delegation of Ukrainian entrepreneurs to Kazakhstan.
The Ukrainian business mission visited Kazakhstan, including the Pavlodar Region, a major industrial hub with significant heavy industry and energy capacity.
During the visit, meetings with government officials, financial institutions, and business representatives, alongside regional visits aimed at launching joint projects took place.
They held talks with the leadership of Baiterek National Management Holding in Astana. The Astana International Financial Centre and the city administration Ukrainian were also visited by entrepreneurs.
Also, participants examined investor conditions, state support tools, and production localization opportunities in the Karaganda Region and the Sary Arka Special Economic Zone. They assessed production capacity and identify areas for cooperation delegation in Qarmet, Qaragandy Power Silicon, and on the Shans farm.
Leading industrial companies of the Pavlodar Region, including Aluminum of Kazakhstan, Eurasian Energy Corporation, and EkibastuzFerroAlloys, discussed cooperation in industry, energy, and equipment supply with Ukrainian representatives.
Kokshetau, the administrative center of the Akmola Region, a key hub for Kazakhstan’s agro-industrial sector, also welcomed the delegation.
Nevertheless, a key area of cooperation is the agro-industrial sector. The cooperation between dairy farms in several Kazakh regions with the Ukrainian Milk Producers Association on breeding livestock supply and professional training counts many years. Also, they expect logistics to play a central role in restoring bilateral ties.
NH Logistics UKR has been offering IOR Importer of Record and EOR Exporter of Record services since 2001 and is a market leader in Ukraine and Eurasia, supporting many clients with their import/export shipments.

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