Kazakhstan will continue to actively participate in the development of the North-South transport corridor, Kazakh Transport Minister Marat Karabayev said during a speech at the first North-South transport trade and export forum in Aktau.
"Kazakhstan intends to continue its active participation in the development of the eastern branch of the North-South transport corridor, which has the highest potential for growth in cargo flows until 2030 and appears to be the safest for the shortest transit to the Indian Ocean. Therefore, it is necessary to begin the practical implementation of the roadmap signed today for the synchronous development of the potential of the eastern route of the North-South corridor, passing through the territories of Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Iran," Marat Karabayev said.
The North-South International Transport Corridor is a 7,200 km multimodal route that connects St. Petersburg with the ports of Iran and India. It is an alternative to the sea route connecting Europe, the Persian Gulf countries, and the Indian Ocean via the Suez Canal.
The western and eastern branches of the ITC pass through Iran; the western branch provides for transportation through Iran by road via Rasht, and the eastern branch by rail. The final point in Iran is the port of Bandar Abbas, from which cargo can be delivered to India by sea. The western branch also passes through Azerbaijan, while the eastern branch passes through Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.
