BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 2. The European Union is ready to support the development of the Trans-Caspian Transport Route, EU Ambassador Luc Devigne said at the TIF 2026.
This was announced in a statement issued by the press service of the Turkmen government, citing the ambassador's speech at the Turkmenistan Investment Forum 2026, held in Ashgabat yesterday.
“As noted at the Central Asia-European Union Summit with the participation of President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, our initiatives are aimed at developing the Trans-Caspian Transport Route,” he said.
The ambassador said railway modernization would represent an important step in developing Turkmenistan’s transport infrastructure. The EU confirmed its readiness to continue cooperation with the Turkmen government, he added.
Meanwhile, the European Union has identified the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor (TITR) as a key route for strengthening transport links between Europe and Central Asia. The corridor connects Central Asia with the South Caucasus and Europe through the Caspian Sea, with Turkmenistan's Turkmenbashi International Sea Port forming one of its important links. The EU is working with Turkmenistan to improve infrastructure, logistics efficiency and regional economic integration along the route.
The EU's engagement has increasingly focused on turning the corridor into a more efficient trade route through infrastructure investment, improved logistics and digitalization. In February 2026, the European Commission published a study identifying investment needs along the Trans-Caspian route, including transport, trade, energy and digital connections. The EU said trade on the corridor had quadrupled since 2022 and could increase further with targeted investment.
Turkmenistan has also been involved in efforts to improve the corridor's operational efficiency. In March 2025, Turkmenbashi hosted a UNECE seminar on trade and transport facilitation along the Trans-Caspian Corridor, focusing on digitalization of multimodal data and document exchange. In September 2026, TRACECA and UNECE held another seminar on developing a digital multimodal Trans-Caspian Corridor, with participation from the European Commission and other international partners.
