Turkmenistan proposed to sign a Memorandum on the commercialization of the Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran (KTI) railway corridor during an online meeting of the Regional Planning Council of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) on Friday, the Ashgabat-based Orient news outlet reports.
At the meeting chaired by the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economy of Turkmenistan Toyly Myalikov, the Turkmen side proposed to sign the document on January 28 next year in Ashgabat, on the ECO Day.
The memorandum will help to increase the economic potential of the railway corridor capable of transporting up to 12 million tons of cargo annually. So far, on average, only about 1 million tons of cargo per year are transported through this corridor, according to the report.
The Turkmen side noted that within the framework of working meetings between representatives of the railway departments of these countries, the initiative on the Memorandum was fully supported, and stressed that this document will strengthen the economic prosperity in the region and contribute overcoming the negative consequences of the coronavirus pandemic.
At the same time, the meeting participants emphasized the presence of significant potential for strengthening cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, transport, energy and investment to achieve the goals set out in the ECO Vision 2025.
The Turkmen side at the online meeting was represented by delegates from the ministries of Trade and Foreign Economic Relations, Energy, Healthcare and Medical Industry, Education, Culture, the State Committee on Statistics, the Agency for Transport and Communications, the Türkmengaz State Concern, the Academy of Sciences, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan.