Turkmenistan, UN discuss matters related to Afghanistan

The parties discussed the possibility of actively attracting Afghanistan to participate in large-scale projects on a global scale, primarily in Central Asia, including increasing the efforts for the establishment of peace and security in the country.

Ashgabat has previously declared its readiness to provide its political space for conducting peace talks on Afghanistan. Turkmenistan is lobbying for the implementation of a number of regional infrastructure projects with the participation of Afghanistan. Turkmenistan is particularly working on the implementation of such projects involving Afghanistan as the construction of a railway to Tajikistan and a gas pipeline to Pakistan and India.

Projects are also being assessed on the use of Afghan transit routes for the supply of Turkmen electricity. Furthermore, work is underway to create an Afghanistan-Turkmenistan-Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey transport corridor heading to Europe.

The Lapis Lazuli transit project envisions railways and highways connecting the city of Torghundi in Afghanistan’s Herat Province with Ashgabat, and further with the Caspian port of Turkmenbashi. The corridor will continue to Baku, then through Tbilisi to Ankara with branches in Poti and Batumi, and then from Ankara to Istanbul.