Russia has accepted to Turkmenistan's joining to the agreement on the North- South international transport corridor. The corresponding order was signed by the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Mikhail Mishustin, reports TASS.

It says that the Russian government accepts the proposal of the Ministry of Transport, agreed with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other interested departments, to express consent to Turkmenistan's accession to this project. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation must notify Iran, as the depositary of the said agreement, of the consent of the Russian Federation to join the document of the said state.

Earlier, Ashgabat announced plans to become a participant in the project. The head of the Transport and Communications Department Mammetkhan Chakyyev at the XIV International Economic Forum "Russia - the Islamic World: Kazanforum 2023" in May said that Turkmenistan has launched the procedure for joining this ITC.

He also spoke about working with representatives of Russia, Kazakhstan and Iran to ensure seamless service, the formation of a single end-to-end tariff throughout the route.

One of the promising directions of the North-South transport corridor is the international seaport of Turkmenbashi. In order to increase cargo transportation through the Caspian Sea, a logistics center of Turkmenistan will be created in the port special economic zone "SEZ "Lotos" of the Astrakhan region.

The intergovernmental Agreement on the creation of a multimodal North-South transport corridor was signed by Russia, India and Iran in 2000. Later, the list of participants expanded to 14. In comparison with the sea route through the Suez Canal, the distance is reduced by more than two times, which reduces the time and cost of transportation.

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