Uzbekistan is another crossroads in the Middle Corridor

Uzbekistan and India have launched a new multimodal container route. The first cargo was shipped by sea from India to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas and from there to Uzbekistan by rail through Iran and Turkmenistan.

The 2,673 km multimodal route includes the ports of Mundra, Nava Sheva (Navi Mumbai) and Chennai. From there, the cargo is shipped across the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas, where it is transhipped to rail platforms.

The cargo is then transported by rail to the border of Turkmenistan. Here it is reloaded onto Uztemiryul container railway platforms with the wheelbase used by the railways of Uzbekistan and the post-Soviet countries (1520 mm) and taken to Sergeli station. The first time, the containers travelled almost 2.7 thousand kilometres in just 20 days. In the future, the aim is to reduce this time to 15 days.

It is anticipated that the transit of goods from India to Uzbekistan will eventually be conducted via the Iranian port of Chabahar, which is operated by India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) under the terms of a ten-year agreement that was signed in May 2024. The port is of great importance for India's regional presence. Chabahar Port is planned to play a pivotal role in the North-South international transport corridor.
Since IPGL commenced operations at Chabahar Port, India has already shipped over 90,000 containers and 8.4 million tonnes of cargo through the port, significantly enhancing trade ties with the region.

There are alternative routes for transporting cargo from the Indian Ocean basin to Central Asia. In November 2021, the first transit cargo from Uzbekistan arrived in Pakistan. Subsequently, the Pakistani authorities facilitated the entry of Uzbek truckers with a view to expanding transit through Gwadar, Karachi and Qasim. China is involved in the development of Gwadar port in Pakistan as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the broader One Belt, One Road initiative.
Notwithstanding the challenging relationship between India and Pakistan, the two countries have the potential to collaborate on transit matters. For instance, in the spring of 2022, India undertook its inaugural shipment to Uzbekistan via Pakistan and Afghanistan. The goods were transported by sea from Mumbai to Karachi and subsequently conveyed by lorry across the two borders to their destination.

For a number of years, the governments of Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan have been engaged in collaborative efforts pertaining to the Trans-Afghan railway project. The Trans-Afghan railway project was initially proposed by Uzbekistan in 2018. The railway is scheduled to be constructed from Mazar-e-Sharif to Kabul, subsequently extending to the Torkham border with Pakistan. Upon completion, the railway is expected to have a planned capacity of up to 20 million tonnes of cargo per year, thereby significantly reducing transit time and costs for goods sent from Uzbekistan to Pakistan. It is anticipated that the railway will be operational by 2028.

Given that construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is scheduled to commence in the forthcoming autumn, Uzbekistan is poised to become a pivotal node in the Middle Corridor, with North-South transit routes converging at its doorstep. Another such route is Azerbaijan, the importance of which is set to increase following the construction of the Resht-Astara railway route. This will provide both Azerbaijan and Russia with the shortest direct railway access to ports on the Indian Ocean coast, including the same port of Chabahar. The existence of "crossroads" and "branches" along the Middle Corridor will facilitate economic growth in Central Asia and the South Caucasus.


Vladimir Tskhvediani
Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkey Strategic Partnership Information Support Centre

SR-CENTER.INFO