A group of managers from Turkmen Railways (Turkmendemiryollary) visited Afghanistan this week to discuss railway infrastructure projects.
High on the agenda was the construction of a goods warehouse at Torghundi station, and the first stage of the Torghundi-Sanabar section of the Torghundi-Herat railroad.
During the visit, the Turkmen delegation held talks with the head of the Afghan Railway Authority, Bakht-ur Rahman Sharafat. They discussed railroad connections between the two countries, including a joint plan for the Torghundi-Sanabar project.
On July 29 there were talks with the Afghan Cabinet of Ministers’ deputy head for economic affairs. The Afghan official approved the allocation of land for the warehouse complex, and signed off the Torghundi-Sanabar project.
The head of Afghanistan’s Herat province, Nur Mohammad Islamjar, has commented that these projects will contribute to Afghanistan’s economic stability, and stimulate Herat’s industrial development.
As part of the visit, an agreement was also reached to establish a working group to increase cargo transportation between the two countries.
Afghanistan is interested in transporting its goods along the Lazurite Corridor (a trade route that passes through Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey), and announced that it would conduct a tariff analysis.
