ASTANA, Kazakhstan, September 26. Expanding the potential of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (Middle Corridor), connecting China to Europe through Kazakhstan, is important, said Minister of Transport of Kazakhstan Marat Karabayev during the Global Sustainable Transport Forum in the Chinese capital Beijing, Trend reports.
He noted the progress of work to eliminate bottlenecks, as a result of which it is planned to increase transportation volumes along the Middle Corridor by more than five times.
The minister also spoke in detail about the ongoing work to develop the transport and logistics industry, roads, and aviation. At the same time, the launch of the construction of a logistics center in the city of Xi’an and the start of the implementation of the project “construction of the Bakhty-Ayagoz railway line”, where a new, third border crossing with China will open, were noted.
Further, within the framework of the forum, the First Meeting of the Ministers of Transport of Central Asia and the People's Republic of China took place. At it, Karabayev introduced participants to Kazakhstan’s plans to expand the capacity of existing transport facilities through new projects.
In addition, Karabayev voiced proposals for attractive areas of cooperation in the railway industry, in the field of logistics, the expansion of air terminals, and road construction.
Following the event, the participants signed a memorandum on the creation of a mechanism for a meeting of the ministers of transport of the Central Asian countries and the People's Republic of China, which will allow coordinating planning and identifying priority areas and key tasks of transport cooperation.
The Middle Corridor is a transportation and trade route that connects Asia and Europe, passing through several countries in the region. It is an alternative route to the traditional Northern Corridor and Southern Corridor. The route starts in China and crosses Central Asian countries such as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. It then passes through the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Türkiye before reaching Europe. The Middle Corridor offers a land route that connects the eastern parts of Asia, including China, with Europe, bypassing the longer maritime routes.