Turkmenistan International Affairs - The Times Of Central Asia

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Kazakhstan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Russia to Develop North-South Transport Corridor

On July 19 - 20, the Ministry of Transport of Kazakhstan organized its first meeting on the North-South transit and trade corridor in Aktau attended by delegations from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Turkmenistan, UAE, Iran, Iraq, Oman, and Uzbekistan. By connecting Russia and Belarus to ports in the Persian Gulf, with further access to India, the North-South transport corridor will broaden prospects for trade and become a key engine for Kazakhstan's economic development. During the meeting, Kazakhstan, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Russia signed a roadmap for the development of the eastern route of the North-South transport corridor from 2024 to 2025, aimed to increase the corridor's throughput to 15 million tons of cargo annually by 2027 and 20 million tons by 2030. Kazakh Minister of Transport Marat Karabaev commented: “Kazakhstan intends to continue its active participation in the development of the Eastern branch of the North-South corridor, which has the highest potential for growth in cargo flows until 2030 and appears to be the safest and shortest transit route to the Indian Ocean. Therefore, it is necessary to begin the practical implementation of the Roadmap signed today for the synchronous development of the eastern route of the North-South corridor passing through the territories of Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Iran.”

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Saudi Islamic Development Bank Increasing Its Presence in Central Asia

The Saudi-based Islamic Development Bank (IDB) has been particularly active in Central Asia so far in 2024. The growing IDB role is part of Central Asian region’s foreign policy shift toward the Arab world as financial backers to replace Russia, which is devoting huge attention and resources to its war in Ukraine, and China, which is increasingly reluctant to spend large sums of money in Central Asia after pouring in tens of billions of dollars there during the last 25 years. Some of the Central Asian governments owe China substantial amounts of money that they are unlikely to be able to pay for possibly decades. The Central Asian states have been members of the IDB for many years. Kyrgyzstan was first, joining in 1993, followed by Turkmenistan in 1994, Kazakhstan in 1995, Tajikistan in 1996, and Uzbekistan in 2003. One of the IDB’s three regional offices is in Almaty, Kazakhstan (the other two are in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Rabat, Morocco). The IDB has been dealing individually with the five Central Asian countries on a wide range of projects and programs in recent months. Energy Resources In February, Tajik Minister of Economic Development and Trade Zavqi Zavqizoda announced a deal was reached for the IDB to provide $250 million to Tajikistan. Zavqizoda said $150 million of that would go toward construction of the Rogun hydropower plant (HPP). The Rogun HPP was a Soviet-era project. Construction started in 1976 but was discontinued shortly after the Soviet Union collapsed. Tajikistan restarted work on the HPP in 2008. Tajik President Emomali Rahmon has repeatedly said that building the HPP with a planned 3600 MW capacity will make the country energy independent and even allow Tajikistan to bring in extra revenue exporting electricity to neighboring countries. In its 28 years as an IDB member, Tajikistan had received some $620 million from the IDB, so the $250 million announced in February 2024 represents a significant jump in IDB financial help. Not surprisingly, when IDB President Muhammad Al-Jasser visited Kyrgyzstan in June, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov sought IDB investment in the Kambar-Ata-1 HPP, another decades-old project with a multi-billion-dollar price tag that has barely made any progress in being realized during the 33 years Kyrgyzstan has been independent. Al-Jasser did not commit to IDB financing for the Kyrgyz HPP. However, less than a week after Al-Jasser was in Kyrgyzstan, the IDB was one of several international financial organizations that signed on at a conference in Vienna to be a members of a coordination donors’ committee for the Kambar-Ata-1 projects. At a meeting in Istanbul in February, the IDB reaffirmed its support for the Central Asia-South Asia-1000 (CASA-1000) project that aims to export electricity from HPPs in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Kyrgyz Energy Minister Taalaybek Ibrayev met with Al-Jasser in June during the latter’s visit to Kyrgyzstan to discuss funding for Kyrgyzstan’s section of CASA-1000. Not Only Energy In June, the IDB pledged up to $2 billion in funding for improvements to water management...

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Belgian Company Expands Turkmenistan Operations to Support Growth of Middle Corridor

Jan De Nul, a Belgian group of companies known for its offshore construction and environmental projects, is expanding its activities in Turkmenistan. The company’s expansion is a response to the expected increase in cargo traffic along the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), also known as the Middle Corridor. A spokesperson from the company said: "We recognize the need to deepen maritime access channels to port infrastructure and operating bases as Caspian Sea levels drop and cargo traffic increases. Our company has the expertise and resources needed to address these challenges quickly and efficiently, given the growing role of the TITR in the region." Jan De Nul's expansion in Turkmenistan confirms the region's importance and potential for transportation infrastructure development.

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First Chinese Freight Train Leaves For Iran via Turkmenistan

The Iranian ambassador to China, Mohsen Bakhtiar, has announced the launch of a new freight route linking China and Iran. According to Bakhtiar, a Chinese transit train has left Xi'an for Tehran. It will arrive in the Iranian capital about ten days after departing China. The train will enter Iran through the Inche-Burun checkpoint, after passing through Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Bakhtiar commented that the launch of this route is part of the Iranian embassy's efforts to strengthen the country's transit potential by ensuring the transportation of Chinese goods to West Asia and Europe.

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Henley Passport Index 2024: Kazakhstan Again the Strongest Central Asian Passport

This year's Henley Passport Index, a ranking that shows how many countries citizens of each country can visit without a visa, has been announced. The rating is compiled using information from the International Air Transport Association. It covers 199 passports and 227 countries. The Singaporean passport again takes first place in the rating. Singaporean citizens can visit 195 countries without a visa. In joint second place, able to freely enter 194 countries, are passport holders from France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Spain. Kazakhstan ranks 67th in this year's Index: holders of a Kazakhstani passport can enter 79 countries without a visa. Next in Central Asia is Kyrgyzstan, in 78th place, whose citizens can freely visit 65 countries. Uzbekistan is 79th in the ranking (64 countries), Tajikistan is 82nd (60), and Turkmenistan is 90th (52) The world's weakest passport is the Afghan passport. Citizens of Afghanistan can only visit 28 countries without a visa.

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Afghanistan Ready to Implement TAPI Project

The meeting of Turkmenistan's ambassador to Afghanistan, Khoji Ovezov, with Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaki in Kabul demonstrated specific dynamics in implementing the TAPI gas pipeline project. The news agency Alemarah reported the talks centered on the TAPI project and its advancement in Afghanistan. Diplomats discussed the possibility of increasing the pipeline's capacity, which could significantly increase the volume of Turkmen gas supplies to Pakistan and India. In addition to TAPI, the sides considered expanding transit and transportation connections through the Turgundi station and the joint electric power project of the Nurul Jihad substation in Herat province. The Afghan side assured determination to resolve the outstanding issues on the TAPI project and start actual work. "We are preparing all the necessary documents and starting preparations for construction," Amir Khan Muttaki said. The minister also noted the work being done to develop railroad facilities in the dry port of Turgundi and promised to update Turkmenistan soon. Taliban official Zabihullah Mujahid recently announced Afghanistan's readiness to develop the TAPI project further and cooperate with regional countries to create a North-South international transport corridor.