Uzbekistan makes progress on Trans-Afghan railway initiative

TASHKENT: Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Transport said that Uzbekistan has made important advancements regarding the Trans-Afghan railway project, currently working on the feasibility study for the initiative. According to Trend News Agency reports, the construction efforts for a railway project connecting China, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan are ongoing. This project is considered a vital part of Uzbekistan’s efforts to strengthen its transit capacity. In the field of international transport, Uzbekistan, in collaboration with Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan, has introduced an electronic licensing system aimed at facilitating cross-border transport and enhancing the efficiency of logistical processes. Additionally, 24 transport and logistics centers have been designated as international dry ports across the country, reinforcing Uzbekistan’s position as a key transport and logistics hub in the region. This comes after the initial trilateral meeting of foreign ministers from Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan held in early July of last year in Kabul. During the meeting, an intergovernmental agreement was signed to lay the groundwork for a feasibility study of the Trans-Afghan railway project. According to the trilateral agreement, the proposed 573-kilometer railway will start from the city of Termiz in Uzbekistan, pass through Mazar-i-Sharif and Logar in Afghanistan, and extend to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region in Pakistan. It is estimated that once this corridor is completed, it will facilitate the transportation of up to 20 million tons of cargo annually by rail, significantly reducing transport costs and transit times.