Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 27
By Nigar Guliyeva – Trend:
Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and China discussed the cooperation in the field of international road transport at the trilateral meeting held in Tashkent on Jan.24-25, the Uzbek Agency for Road and River Transport reported.
The meeting participants focused on issues of the formation of the Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan-China automobile corridor and the further development of cooperation between Kyrgyzstan, China and Uzbekistan in the field of international road transportation.
The sides exchanged information on the state of bilateral and multilateral cooperation in the field of international road transport, discussed the implementation of the signed Agreements in this area and agreed on preliminary quotas for the exchange of permission forms for the carriage of goods for 2018.
There was noted that the Uzbekistan-Kyrgyzstan-China transport corridor is of key importance for diversification of foreign trade routes and a substantial reduction in the terms of transportation of goods between states and transit through their territories.
The agreement between the governments of Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and China on international road transport was signed on February 19, 1998.
Currently, transportation between Uzbekistan and China is carried out mainly by rail through Kazakh-Chinese checkpoints, which entails significant costs and time lost.
The new transport corridor Tashkent - Andijan (Uzbekistan) - Osh - Irkeshtam (Kyrgyzstan) - Kashgar (China) is the shortest automobile route from the Fergana Valley to China. In late October, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and China successfully organized the first pilot caravan of nine cars that passed along this route.
The three countries also mull the rail line, which is expected to open up access for supplies of goods to the markets of Western Asia and the countries of the Middle East. It will become one of the shortest routes for the transport of Chinese goods to the EU.