On July 18, 2022, a two-day international forum on "International Transport Transit Corridor: Connectivity and Development" was held in the building of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, in a mixed offline + online format.

Turkmenistan - an important international hub on the Eurasian shipping line

Turkish President Sheikh Berdymukhamedov delivered a written speech to the forum. Sherdar said that the land is located at the crossroads of the Eurasian continent, and the logistics and transportation services in the region should be developed responsibly, and the potential of international transportation and transit will be continuously improved: to modernize the transportation infrastructure internally, and externally to create favorable conditions for the reliability of international transport corridors, so that the Become an important international hub on the Eurasian shipping line.

Shcherdar stressed that at the 6th Caspian Summit, the parties emphasized the huge role of transport and transit corridors in enhancing cooperation and ensuring sustainable development. Turkey is continuously integrating into the field of international transportation, and it is planned to further expand the infrastructure construction of major transportation and transit corridors, which are essential for the transportation of goods. Turkey pursues an "open door" policy and has launched many major international and regional projects, with huge potential for transportation and transit, connecting Central Asia, the Caspian Sea, the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea regions with the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia. This will bring the economic and trade partnership in Central Asia to a modern level, inject strong impetus into future regional relations, and lay the foundation for a new geo-economy.

Sherdar pointed out that Turkey will continue to carry out international cooperation on the development of transit corridors, build large-scale international transit corridors, ensure reliable energy and transportation efficiency, and aim to achieve global sustainable development goals and benefit the people of the world. During the meeting, all parties will exchange views on important issues such as maintaining regional stability, coordinating the economic status of various countries, and stimulating and strengthening the national economy. This will promote the harmonious development of transport systems including road, rail, sea and air routes, and will also facilitate the formation of multimodal logistics centers and dry ports for cooperation in the field of transportation.

In the end, Sherdar congratulated the participants for their smooth work, good health, safety and smoothness, and wished the meeting a complete success.

Kha-Tuy Railway - an important part of the Eurasian railway network

At the meeting, Miroslav Antonovich, Chairman of the Committee of the Organization of Railway Cooperation (OSJD), emphasized the special significance of the "Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran" railway as part of the international North-South transport corridor.

He said: "This trunk line will create more routes connecting Kazakhstan, central Russia and Turkmenistan with Iran, the Persian Gulf region, South and Southeast Asian countries. It will increase freight and passenger traffic and reduce transportation costs, Save travel time and boost economic growth.”

Antonovich stressed that the Kha-Tuy Railway enables project participants to enter the world market and is an important part of the Eurasian railway network.

He added that currently, Turkmenistan is also a member of the organization's corridors 6 and 10, and at the same time, Turkmenistan has joined the organization's "International Transit Tariff and Harmonized Transit Tariff Agreement". This will not only allow Turkmenistan to establish a convenient platform and reach an agreement on the unified tariff of China-Europe routes, but also strengthen cooperation and exchanges and bring new opportunities for the development of the transportation industry.

Antonovich believes that the widespread use of unified freight orders for rail routes will also help achieve these goals. Currently, the organization is developing this document.

He said: "In the context of the development of new technologies, including digital technology, the railway cooperation organization is constantly transforming and progressing, looking for new ways to improve and develop the railways of member countries. It reduces the time of border crossing and customs procedures, reduces the number of documents and eliminates the Paper-based paperwork, increased shipping speed, allows us to meet all modern requirements and challenges.”

The forum was organized by the Transport and Communications Agency under the government of Turkmenistan in conjunction with the "Turkmen Forum" company (Turkmen Forum). . More than 300 representatives from all over the world will participate offline, and more than 100 representatives will participate online through the Zoom platform, including 171 representatives of foreign companies and 87 representatives of local companies in Turkmenistan. It aims to discuss hot issues related to resuming and adapting international transport to the new reality after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Within the framework of the conference, Turkmenistan will also organize participants to inspect the transportation infrastructure in Turkmenistan, and will visit the built highways in Turkmenistan, the Turkmenbashi International Seaport and the Awaza National Tourist Area.

According to Turkmen media reports, the expected goals of the forum fall into one point - "We need to interact more actively, find ways to simplify procedures to increase freight and passenger traffic, optimize and harmonize tariff rates and other mechanisms", this forum aims to Committed to restoring and stimulating the potential of transport and transit corridors to enhance regional and inter-regional connectivity and development.

The forum "is planned to be held annually to expand cooperation between Turkmenistan transport companies and logistics organizations and foreign passenger and freight companies". Editor / Xu Shengpeng