Turkmenistan is ready to actively contribute to the implementation of major transport initiatives, including China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This follows from the presentation of the Turkmen delegation at the 1st meeting of Transport Ministers of Central Asia and China, held at the Global Forum on Sustainable Transport in Beijing.
According to the Agency for Transport and Communications under the Cabinet of Ministers, Turkmenistan was represented at the meeting by the Agency’s Deputy Director General Batyr Annayev.
Turkmenistan attaches great importance to the development of strategic partnership with t China and other Central Asian countries and sees enormous opportunities for expanding transport corridors in Central Asia, which will contribute to the economic recovery of each nation in the region, Annayev said.
In recent years, Turkmenistan has invested heavily in the modernization and development of its transport infrastructure.
Most of the locomotives and electric vehicles purchased by Turkmenistan today, as well as communication systems, are supplied from China. A joint project for the construction of a dredging vessel at the national shipyard with the participation of Chinese partners is also being successfully implemented. There are representative offices of the Transport and Logistics Center of Turkmenistan and the Turkmen national air carrier in China, which contributes to strengthening bilateral cooperation in the transport sector, the speaker continued.
He briefed on a number of large-scale infrastructure projects aimed at building up the country’s transit capacity. This includes the construction of roads and railways, sea and river ports, logistics terminals and transshipment complexes.
The importance of the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railway in connecting to other regional and international transport corridors was also noted.
Thus, as part of the development of the North-South international corridor, together with partners from Russia, Kazakhstan and Iran, preferential tariffs for rail container transportation along the eastern branch of this route were agreed to ensure a single through tariff for shippers throughout the route. A regular container train on the North-South corridor has already been launched. According to preliminary forecasts, by 2025 the total volume of export traffic from Russia alone on the eastern branch of this route may exceed 5 million tons per year.
Turkmenistan’s great interest in the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway construction project, which will give a powerful impetus to the development of transport links in Central Asia, was also emphasized.
According to the Turkmen side, such projects will contribute to the transformation of the region into a key transit hub, the development of trade and transit of goods between China, Europe and the countries of the Persian Gulf through Central Asia.
During the forum, the Turkmen delegation presented a number of initiatives to promote cooperation between China and Central Asian countries in the transport sector.
These initiatives include:
- Creating joint transport and logistics enterprises and alliances between national carriers of China and Central Asian countries
- Developing a pass-through tariff for container transportation on the route China – Central Asia – Europe
- Constructing dry ports and logistics hubs in border areas for the formation and processing of transit cargo flows
- Implementing digital solutions for the management and monitoring of cargo transportation in real time
- Providing training for personnel in the transport and logistics industry
The main outcome of the first meeting of transport ministers in the China-Central Asia format was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding for the joint implementation of the agreements reached and stimulating active cooperation between China and the Central Asian states in the field of transport within the framework of BRI.
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The Global Forum on Sustainable Transport is taking place in Beijing on 25-26 September. It is organized by the Ministry of Transport of the People’s Republic of China. Under the motto “Sustainable transport: Working together to promote global development”, more than a thousand delegates gathered at the forum – government officials, heads of international and regional organizations, large industry companies from dozens of countries. The Forum focuses on the development of global ties, the exchange of innovative technologies and experience, the promotion of green and low-carbon development, as well as the deepening of partnership in the transport sector. ///nCa, 26 September 2023
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