Baku, Ankara, Ashgabat ink Trans-Caspian route declaration

Azerbaijan, Turkey and Turkmenistan have signed the Ashgabat Declaration to create a transport corridor from Beijing to London, TRT Haber reported with reference to Turkish Minister for Transport, Shipping and Communications Ahmet Arslan on September 5.

He noted that the document was undersigned at the meeting of the transport ministers of three countries in the Turkmen capital.

Currently, production of different commodities is shifted from the West to the East. Therefore, in order to supply products manufactured in Asia and our region, the West an efficient transport corridor is needed, said the minister, adding that the project being realized 2003 is aiming that.

Arslan stressed that through realization of projects such as Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, construction of the third airport in Istanbul and others, Turkey seeks to integrate the international projects to the national development plan of the transport sector.

“The Ashgabat Declaration signed in Turkmenistan enables us to take another step closer to our goal,” he added.

The Trans-Caspian International Transport Route intends to become the most efficient way of economic connection of the continent's two sides. It will transport approximately 300,000-400,000 containers by 2020, enriching Azerbaijani income.

TITR runs through China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and then to Europe via Turkey and Ukraine. The first test container train on route Shihezi (China)-Dostyk-Aktau-Alat, arrived in Baku international sea trade port on August 3, 2015.

New competitive tariff came into the force on TMTM since July 2016. The route will enable the countries to reduce the costs of international cargo transportation.