North-South and TITR: Tokayev outlines Kazakhstan’s transport priorities

He further informed the summit participants that Kazakhstan was simultaneously establishing a network of cross-border industrial and trade centers along its border with Russia, as well as on its borders with Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

A necessary regulatory-legal framework has been established to strengthen industrial and trade cooperation, he said.

According to the President, a modern infrastructure for expanding business ties and launching new production facilities is taking shape across a large part of the CIS area.

The next task, he said, is to unlock the existing potential by reducing unjustified and artificially created barriers to mutual trade, expanding the services market, and creating favorable conditions for mutual investment.

“The logical continuation of this work should be the implementation of major joint initiatives under the auspices of the Commonwealth. In this regard, I propose establishing a Portfolio of Flagship CIS Industrial and Technological Projects for 2027-2030. In my view, the focus should be placed on the production of high value-added goods, which would create new growth drivers for our economies, he said.

“At the same time, recognizing the complexity of this task, Kazakhstan will maintain a pragmatic and realistic approach, while continuing to make effective use of the advantages and achievements already attained in the economic sphere. Development institutions, financial organizations and businesses should also be engaged in this work,” he added.

Another promising area for expanding cooperation highlighted in the speech was the development of transport ties and strengthening the transit potential.

Tokayev said that Kazakhstan prioritizes the development of the North-South, Western China – Western Europe, as well as the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route.

“Their seamless interconnectivity will significantly enhance the efficiency of the entire continental transport system. This objective is supported by the Concept for Integrating the Main Transport Corridors Passing Through the Territories of CIS Member States, which was approved in May of this year at the initiative of Kazakhstan,” stressed he.

Tokayev further said that Kazakhstan makes a certain contribution to the implementation of this Concept. In August, the country launched the construction of the new Aral-Caspian Highway with a total length of over 1,500 kilometers. With the commissioning of this strategic project, the road corridor from China to Europe will be shortened by approximately 1,000 kilometers, while transit cargo delivery times will be reduced to three days.

He said that work is also continuing on other major projects. Special importance is attached to the so-called "soft infrastructure", including the digitalization of transportation, electronic document management, and the harmonization of border procedures.

“A key priority is the creation of a "single digital corridor." At Kazakhstan's initiative, electronic exchanges of permit documents have been introduced with Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Similar work is underway with Russia and Belarus. In cooperation with the Russian side, the first cross-border autonomous freight transportation services were launched in May of this year. I believe it would be practically advisable to scale up the most effective solutions across the entire CIS region,” he concluded.

Earlier, in his remarks, Tokayev called on CIS states to strengthen trust-based dialogue.