Türkmendemiryollary is an active participant in transport projects between Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe
Turkmenistan today pays great attention to the modernization of railway transport, as evidenced by the large-scale infrastructure projects implemented in the country in recent years. Geopolitical changes in the world bring their own adjustments and changes to the world transport system and Turkmenistan is actively involved in "building" new global corridors and routes connecting different continents, Azat Atamuradov, Chairman of the “Türkmendemiryollary” Agency said, speaking at the ITTC-2023 conference in Ashgabat.
The North-South corridor opens up great opportunities for increasing the volume of cargo transportation from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Iran, expanding export routes to the Middle East and Southeast Asia. The longest part of this railway line, more than 700 km, passes through the territory of Turkmenistan and it is on this section that the most active cargo transportation occurs.
Turkmenistan is a member of another modern multimodal transport and transit corridor along the Silk Road route, created under an agreement signed between Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Turkmenistan.
A greater future lies with the Lapis Lazuli or Lapis Lazuli Corridor that connects Afghanistan, Turkey and Europe. The agreement on the creation of the route was signed in 2018 by Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey. The transport corridor is designed to increase economic integration in the region and help improve the quality of life of the Afghan people, Azat Atamuradov noted.
The cross-border railway line Kerki - Imamnazar - Akina - Andkhoy, built by the Turkmen side, became the first link in the Asian transport corridor. The opening ceremony took place in Afghanistan in January 2021. In the future, this promising branch will connect the region with the Pacific borders.
As the head of “Türkmendemiryollary” noted, active work is currently underway in Turkmenistan to create international integrated logistics centers within the framework of the agreement on the North-South transport corridor. The international multimodal route China - Kyrgyzstan - Uzbekistan - Turkmenistan - Azerbaijan - Georgia - Turkey - Europe and back is rapidly "unwinding". Turkmenistan contributes to this project by implementing national and regional programs for the development of new transport links, which will strengthen the position of Central Asia as a modern transport hub.
Today's goal is to create a working group at the government level to study the possibilities and form new transport routes in the direction of Central Asia - Southern Europe, as well as Central Asia - the Middle East. In addition, practical work is underway on the international transport and transit corridors Turkmenistan - Iran - Oman - Qatar and on the joint construction of the transport route Uzbekistan - Turkmenistan - the Caspian Sea and further through the Black Sea ports to Europe.
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