Kazakhstan proposes establishing council to boost Eurasian transport network within North-South corridor
President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev of Kazakhstan suggested launching a joint program to promote investment and infrastructure development of the eastern part of the North-South corridor, Kazinform News Agency cites Akorda.
Addressing the 2nd Central Asia – Russia summit, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev stated: “Kazakhstan has a task to continue its active efforts to establish modern, safe, sustainable transport and logistics infrastructure of the region and the Eurasian space as a whole.
According to him, Kazakhstan plans to repair 11,000 thousand and build up to 5,000 kilometers of new railways before 2030.
Concrete steps are being taken to increase the capacity of the Western Europe – Western China highway corridor. By 2030, the section from Kyzylorda to the Russian border will be converted into a four-lane road. Together with our Russian and Turkmen partners, we are developing the eastern part of the North–South international transport corridor, which already marked a significant increase in freight traffic. There are plans to double the capacity of this transport artery by 2027. Last year, cargo flow along this route reached almost 2.5 million tons, stated Tokayev.
The Kazakh President called for launching a joint program to promote investment and infrastructure development of the eastern part of the North-South corridor to fully unlock the route’s potential and encourage funds needed.
Tokayev also urged to engage international financial institutions, development banks, and investment funds in this initiative.
Promising prospects are also seen in the development of transport corridors through Afghanistan toward the markets of South Asia. To coordinate efforts and address these issues efficiently, it is proposed to establish a Council for the development of the Eurasian transport network within the North–South corridor, said the Kazakh leader.
Earlier, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Russia accounts for a third of the total trade turnover of Central Asian countries, surpassing 50 billion US dollars, up 20%, in 2024. Kazakhstan is responsible for more than half of the country’s trade with the region, which reached 28 billion US dollars last year, added the Kazakh leader.
