The Turkmen and Iranian Presidents, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have had a telephone conversation. One of the
most promising spheres of bilateral cooperation is transport and
communications, Trend reports.
They noted the significance of realizing the North-South railway line.
The project will connect Turkmenistan, Iran and Kazakhstan. It will
give access to the ports of the Gulf, activating cooperation on the
Eurasian continent.
Freighting and transit will reach 10-12 million tons annually. The
corridor will reduce the distance by 600 km, compared with the
Beynau-Turkmenabat-Saraghs line. Transport time will be reduced by two
days, as well as expenses.
The three states are constructing the railway together, financed by
the Asian Development Bank and the Islamic Development Bank.
Turkmenistan hosted a meeting in Ashkhabad in late April. The sides
signed an interstate deal on formation of a new transport and transit
corridor Uzbekistan-Turkmenistan-Iran-Oman-Qatar. Experts and working
groups of the five states will develop plans for development of the
agreement. They will improve transit, customs services, transport via
roads, railways and sea and activate joint investments.
