Baku, Azerbaijan, June 4
By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:
Members of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States [Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkey and Kyrgyzstan] will sign protocols on the application of common customs procedures and standards, Secretary General of the council Ramil Hasanov told Trend in Baku.
That will allow to actually unite the customs structures of all the countries of the council, as well as to apply more simplified and transparent customs procedures for transit cargo transportation, he said.
"The signing of these protocols will lead to further facilitation of intergovernmental work, and we will secure the application of the same standards in different countries at the same time," Hasanov said. "Currently, the council implements two projects - the Silk Road and Kervansaray, and we want to strengthen and expand them."
"These projects are aimed at an even greater simplification of the existing activities in the field of customs, as well as a full transition to e-systems not only in Azerbaijan but also in all the council member countries," Hasanov said.
He went on to add that currently these protocols are being prepared.
"Negotiations are currently going on between the members of the working group, and the good news is that the parties reached an initial agreement," Hasanov noted. "I hope these protocols will be applied in the future and the customs structures of our countries will be connected."
"For this purpose, it is necessary to sign relevant protocols which are currently under development," said Hasanov, adding that he expects those protocols to be signed by the Council's member states soon.
"As you know, the customs sphere is closely related to the transportation sector and economy in general," he said. "We, as the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, coordinate the activities of transportation and economic ministries, as well as the customs structures."
"Cargo transportation from China to Europe and back, especially, via the Trans-Caspian international transportation corridor, strengthening the customs activities, as well as holding discussions on resolving the problems plays a major role for us," Hasanov added.
He pointed out that Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkey, as well as Georgia are the key partners of Europe and Asia in this transportation corridor.
The Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States or Turkic Council is an international organization aimed at developing comprehensive cooperation between member states. It was founded in 2009.
The member states of the Turkic Council are Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. Its secretariat is located in Istanbul.
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