Baku, Azerbaijan, May 23
By Fikret Dolukhanov – Trend:
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev urged the US to support construction of a new railway in Afghanistan that can change the geostrategic and geo-economic situation in Central Asia, the Narodnoye Slovo [People’s Speech] newspaper reported on May 23 citing First Deputy Chairman of the Uzbek Senate Sadik Safayev.
“The president of Uzbekistan raised the issue of financing construction of a railway line in Afghanistan by the international financial structures, in which the United States plays a decisive role,” Safayev said.
He noted that construction of the new Mazar-i-Sharif – Herat railway is of strategic importance not only for Afghanistan, since its implementation can change the geostrategic and geo-economic situation throughout Central Asia and can become one of the decisive factors in bringing sustainable peace and stability in Afghanistan.
"The visit of the Uzbek president marked emergence of a new Uzbekistan, a country that is respected in the whole modern world and has a positive image. A country that today is recognized as an equal partner, even in the US. The visit also showed that President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev is recognized by the leading politicians of the major powers as an authoritative leader of the international scale with whom they seek to establish personal contact,” Safayev commented on the results of the official visit of the head of the republic to the United States on May 15-17.
The governments of Uzbekistan and Afghanistan signed an agreement on construction of the Mazar-i-Sharif – Herat railway in December 2017. The agreement provides for participation of the Uzbek side in the design and construction of the new railroad. The Afghan side will be engaged in attracting financial resources for the implementation of the project. A new 760-kilometer railway line will create an economic corridor in the north-west of Afghanistan.
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @FDolukhanov
