29.04.2026, Rome.
Against the backdrop of sanctions and instability in maritime routes, Italy makes a strategic bet on developing the “Middle Corridor” through the Caspian Sea for secure trade with Asia, Rossa Primavera News Agency Europe Desk wrote on April 26.
At an international forum in Astana on April 22, Italian representatives confirmed their readiness to actively invest in the infrastructure of the Trans-Caspian route, also known as the “Middle Corridor.”
Amid ongoing global instability, Italian businesses are accelerating the creation of new supply chains that will link Europe and Asia while bypassing the traditional Northern route through Russia. The Italian side expressed interest in establishing logistics hubs and service centers to diversify trade and economic ties.
Italy has intensified its participation in Central Asian infrastructure projects due to the overlap of two major crises. On the one hand, instability in the Middle East has made traditional maritime freight unpredictable in both timing and cost. On the other hand, Europe recognizes that the geopolitical and sanctions-driven rupture with Russia is long-term.
Italy, which has historically sought to secure its role as the main trade gateway of Southern Europe, sees close partnership with Kazakhstan as an ideal opportunity to capture strategic cargo transit. For the Italian economy, the uninterrupted functioning of this new route is crucial for maintaining global competitiveness.
The primary interest comes from industries producing high value-added goods, for which delivery speed and capital turnover are critical. These include machine tool manufacturing, industrial equipment production, pharmaceuticals, automotive manufacturing, and the traditional flagship export — fashion industry products. These sectors depend heavily on stable imports of microelectronics and components from Asia, as well as secure export routes for finished European goods to eastern markets.
However, the Trans-Caspian route is unlikely to become a full-fledged infrastructural replacement for Russian corridors, which are currently unavailable for European transit due to sanctions. The traditional Northern corridor was developed over decades and represents a powerful unified land route. The “Middle Corridor,” by contrast, is a complex multimodal pathway requiring constant changes in transport modes (rail—sea ferry—rail).
Although transit volumes across the Caspian are growing rapidly, the route’s capacity still significantly lags behind that of the Trans-Siberian Railway. At present, it is the only available but technically challenging alternative for European businesses, requiring large-scale investment.
This multimodal complexity creates the main infrastructural barriers that Italian investors will face. The primary bottlenecks are the ports of the Caspian Sea—Aktau, Kuryk, and Baku. Businesses already encounter shortages of modern ferries, a lack of container terminals, and significant delays due to double cargo handling. Beyond physical logistics, there are also “soft infrastructure” issues to resolve: investors and carriers need strict unification of customs procedures across all transit countries and the rapid implementation of a single, integrated digital waybill system.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
