BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 12. Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia have a single will to increase the potential of the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), Spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, Nasser Kanaani said at a press conference in Tehran on September 12, Trend reports citing the ministry.
According to Kanaani, there is a clear and gratifying perspective regarding this corridor. In the economic aspect, the INSTC is profitable in terms of reducing both the time and costs of cargo transportation.
The spokesman added that Iran, Azerbaijan and Russia have agreed on accelerating the construction of the Rasht-Astara railway line within the International North-South Transport Corridor. The only part within the mentioned corridor that lacks a railway is the Rasht-Astara part.
The foundation of the ‘International North-South Transport Corridor’ was laid on the basis of an intergovernmental agreement signed between Russia, Iran, and India on September 12, 2000.
In total, 13 countries have ratified the agreement, including Azerbaijan, India, Iran, Russia, Türkiye, etc.
The purpose of creating a corridor is to reduce the delivery time of cargo from India to Russia, as well as to North and West Europe. Delivery time on the current route is more than 6 weeks, it is expected to be reduced to 3 weeks via North-South Transport Corridor.
The 175 km long Qazvin-Rasht railway was officially put into operation on March 6, 2019, to connect Azerbaijani railways with the Iranian railway network within the corridor. In addition, the 167 km long Rasht-Astara railway line must be built in Iran.
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