Azerbaijan and Japan discussed the potential for launching direct flights and explored opportunities for cooperation, according to Samir Rzayev, Chairman of the Management Board at Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL), who shared the update on his X page.

"We had a cordial meeting with Katsuya Watanabe, Japan’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Azerbaijan, The Caspian Post reports, citing local media.

During the meeting, we discussed AZAL’s route network expansion strategy, as well as Baku’s potential for further development as a transit hub. We also considered the prospects of launching direct flights between Azerbaijan and Japan in the future and opportunities for cooperation with Japanese airlines.

As the productive meeting continued, we exchanged views on Azerbaijan’s tourism potential. I believe the meeting was highly effective in exploring new partnership opportunities and reinforcing mutual ties between the two countries in the fields of tourism and aviation," the post reads.