Turkmenistan is currently striving to realize its potential in the transport sector and establish mutually beneficial economic relations for the benefit of all countries and peoples of the Eurasian continent. An important role in this endeavor is played by the national railway industry, which has made great progress and entered a new stage of development. This was reported by the correspondent of Arzuw.news.
Turkmenistan puts forward important initiatives and makes comprehensive efforts to adopt UN General Assembly resolutions in the field of ensuring integrated connectivity between all modes of transport and creating multimodal transit corridors, as well as achieving sustainable development goals.
Since the first years of independence, the state has paid special attention to the construction of steel routes, which contribute to the restoration of historical ties with its neighbors. In particular, the Republic has been a member of the Organization for Cooperation of Railways (OSJD) since 1994 and plays an important role in the expansion of international transit freight traffic routes on the basis of harmonious development of railway infrastructure at the national level and implementation of a coordinated transport policy at the regional level.
The Republic was the first among the CIS countries to start building steel routes to neighboring countries. This is the Tedjen-Serakhs-Mashhad railroad, an important component of the Trans-Asian Railway project crossing the route of the Great Silk Road. This transportation facility, opened in 1996, created great opportunities for the country's development in the first years of independence, when the Turkmen economy was just beginning to integrate into the system of world economic relations.
In 2005, the Bafq-Bender Abbas railroad connected the northeast and south of Iran, thus continuing the line of the Tejen-Mashhad highway. It should be noted that the port of Bandar Abbas ensures the delivery of goods and commodities worldwide via the Arabian Sea basin and the Indian Ocean.
During his first official visit to Iran in June 2007, the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, proposed the construction of a new railroad between the cities of Turkmenbashi and Gurgen. Subsequently, this section became an important link in the international North-South corridor. In fact, Turkmenistan is at the forefront of the creation of this major artery of world transportation logistics.
In 2007-2014, the Uzen-Gyzylgaya-Bereket-Etrek-Gurgen transnational highway was built, connecting the railroad networks of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran. This became a fundamentally new project of interregional cooperation in the sphere of transportation and communication. The political significance of this highway for the countries that built it is evidenced by the power of the states of the Caspian region, Central and South Asia, which have become important players in the geopolitical space of the world. As for the economic component, the highway gave the republics of the region direct access to the countries of the Persian Gulf.
Many countries of the world are showing great interest in using the services of this railway line, as it is the most convenient, economically profitable transit route. The countries of Central Asia, Europe and Russia have got an opportunity to reach the southern seas by a shortened route. On the other hand, a similar opportunity has been created in the northern direction for the Persian Gulf states.
The economic significance and usefulness of the project has already been proven by time. This railroad is used for international transit of cargoes, which occupies a special place in the transport logistics of the entire continent. It is much more convenient to transport cargo via the North-South ITC, because its route is many times shorter than the route through the Suez Canal.
At the forums of international and interregional organizations, Turkmenistan consistently advocates the construction of multimodal transport corridors in Eurasia. In this area, the Republic is effectively cooperating within the framework of the ECO, SCO, CIS, OSCE and TRACECA.
In recent years, more than 1,500 kilometers of railroads have been built in the country, including the Tejen-Serakhs, Turkmenabad-Kerki, Ashgabat-Dashoguz, Bereket-Etrek, and Kerki-Ymamnazar steel highways. Currently, the republic's railroad fleet consists of 218 locomotives, 10,275 freight and 467 passenger cars. At the same time, the authorities continue to consider projects to modernize and upgrade the relevant infrastructure, introduce modern train control automation systems, and create joint logistics centers to increase throughput capacity.
The development of this industry, which plays a key role in long-distance freight transportation, is one of the priority areas of Turkmenistan's foreign policy, which aims to strengthen trade and economic ties with all interested partner countries. The foreign policy strategy of the head of state Serdar Berdimuhamedov to expand international cooperation directly contributes to the work in this area.
"Program for the development of transport diplomacy of the President of Turkmenistan for 2022-2025" provides strategic directions related to the comprehensive modernization of the material and technical base of all types of transport, the creation of modern specialized infrastructure, strengthening the potential of this industry and the country's position as a regional center of transit corridors.
The republic's contribution to the development of international railway transportation is focused on the actual directions of expanding ties between WTO member countries in addressing economic, information, scientific, technical and environmental issues. Turkmenistan's strategy to build new highways and restore the Great Silk Road in the third millennium meets the interests of all.
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