Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, June 18
By Huseyn Hasanov– Trend:
Turkmenistan and Afghanistan signed documents on cooperation in the field of railway transport and power industry, Trend reports referring to Turkmen Foreign Ministry.
The documents were signed during visit of the Turkmen delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov to Herat city in Afghanistan. The Afghan side was represented by Infrastructure Advisor to the President of Afghanistan Muhammad Humayun Qayumi.
The purpose of the meeting was to consider the realization of the agreements reached at the highest level during the official visit of the President of Afghanistan to Turkmenistan in February 2019.
Turkmenistan traditionally supplies electricity to northern areas of Afghanistan on favorable terms, and with the completion of the construction of additional power plants and transmission infrastructure, the volume of its exports to the neighboring state will further increase.
Turkmenistan and Afghanistan are interested in the implementation of a regional transit project through Azerbaijan, according to a joint statement by the presidents of the two countries issued on February 24, 2019. The statement was adopted following the negotiations between President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov and President of Afghanistan Mohammad Ashraf Ghani in Ashgabat.
As the document stated, the leaders of the countries express satisfaction with the beginning of the implementation of the five-sided agreement between Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Turkmenistan on transit and transport cooperation (the Lazurit, or Lapis Lazuli Corridor Agreement) dated November 15, 2017.
The Lapis Lazuli transit project envisions construction of railways and highways connecting the city of Torghundi in Afghanistan’s Herat Province with Ashgabat, and further with the Caspian port of Turkmenbashi. The corridor will continue to Baku, then go through Tbilisi to Ankara with branches in Poti and Batumi, and continue from Ankara to Istanbul.
The budget of the project, which aims to facilitate transit logistics and simplify customs procedures, is estimated at $2 billion. The large-scale project is designed to increase the economic integration of the region and the volume of trade.