Uzbekistan, Russia Work on Trans-Afghan Railway Feasibility Study

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Russian and Uzbek specialists are jointly working on the preparation of a feasibility study for the Trans-Afghan railway project, First Deputy Head of Russian Railways (RZD) Sergey Pavlov said, according to TASS.

He said experts from both countries are continuing cooperation on drafting key sections of the document aimed at establishing sustainable rail connectivity between Central and South Asia.

The project envisions the creation of a transport corridor along the route Termez–Mazar-i-Sharif–Kabul–Peshawar.

The initiative has been under discussion since 2021, when Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan signed a corresponding roadmap in Tashkent.

Implementation of the project was suspended after political changes in Afghanistan, but later work on the route and feasibility study resumed at the expert level.

Railway cooperation issues are being discussed within the framework of the 84th meeting of the CIS Railway Transport Council, held in Ashgabat on 13–14 May. The previous meeting took place in Baku.

It is also noted that in 2026, the CIS rotating chairmanship passed to Turkmenistan, which will coordinate the work of several interstate bodies of the Commonwealth.