The construction of a submarine cable along the bottom of the Caspian Sea will create new opportunities for the development of the Middle Corridor, AzerTelecom CEO Ana Nakashidze said at a seminar dedicated to the launch of the digital backbone during the 59th Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of Governors, Report informs.
According to her, the submarine cable project directly reflects the growing momentum toward regional integration and cooperation.
"Furthermore, going beyond cooperation within Central Asia and the South Caucasus, these interregional connections open the door to the development of the entire Middle Corridor. Numerous initiatives are currently being implemented in this direction in transport, energy, and other sectors. As digital infrastructure becomes the new foundation for cooperation in the region, the significance of this project only increases," she noted.
Nakashidze emphasized that the Digital Silk Way crosses various jurisdictions and regulatory regimes, uniting public and private companies.
"The creation of any corridor requires the harmonization of the regulatory framework. It's important to understand that this isn't just the infrastructure of individual countries-it's a system that facilitates data exchange. In the era of artificial intelligence, access to AI technologies and tools is becoming a key factor in development. However, there's an aspect that's often underestimated: scale matters. If a country isn't part of such a corridor, it doesn't achieve the necessary scale.
That's why countries in the South Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Asia-Pacific region are striving to integrate into these flows, increasing their attractiveness to hyperscalers-the largest cloud service providers. This, in turn, facilitates the development of AI competencies and the formation of a fully-fledged digital ecosystem.
I believe it's time for us to move from discussing solely complex infrastructure, although it is certainly necessary, to orchestrating and harmonizing the entire ecosystem. It may take years, but ultimately, this is the approach we must take," the company's head added.