India to build Central Asia to Persian Gulf corridor bypassing Pakistan

[Singh]

Uzbek road link to skip Pak
​

New Delhi, May 18: India and Uzbekistan today agreed to work towards linking New Delhi with Tashkent by a road that will bypass Pakistan and help boost trade with Afghanistan and central Asia.

The understanding was part of the nearly three dozen agreements signed between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Uzbek President Islam A. Karimov today.

The other pacts include some under which Indian private and public-sector firms would help Uzbekistan set up industries. Another agreement aims to give New Delhi access to the vast Uzbeki gas reserves.

The two sides stressed the need for better transport linkages to boost bilateral and regional trade. In the short term, both nations will focus on opening the Trans-Afghan Corridor and the Central Asia-Persian Gulf Corridor.

"The implementation of these projects will considerably cut down the distance and costs for transportation of goods between Uzbekistan and India, as well as provide Afghanistan the opportunity to integrate into the regional system of transport connectivity," said the joint statement issued after the discussions.

Both routes originate from Tashkent and can be linked to the Iranian ports of Chabahar and Bandar-Abbas. Uzbekistan wants Indian help to construct the links.

Once complete, the routes will enable India ship goods to Iranian ports and transport them by land into Afghanistan and central Asian countries —bypassing both Pakistan and the troubled areas of Afghanistan.

US-led forces now use parts of these routes in Uzbekistan to send supplies to neighbouring Afghanistan by skipping Pakistan where the convoys have come under attack.

The Telegraph - Calcutta (Kolkata) | Nation | Uzbek road link to skip Pak


In case you guys didn't know. India has partly funded both Chahbahar and Bandar Abbas(?) ports in Iran.

 

[Yan Luo Wang]

That is a very clever move.

Accessing resources around the world, should be a top priority for any large developing country. Central Asia, the Middle East, and Africa... are some of the most resource-rich regions in the world.

 

[The Messiah]

This is good news.

Imagine if we had pok which rightly belongs to us! We would have direct route to rest of asia.

 

[dineshchaturvedi]

POK is history, let us move on good move.

 

[ejazr]

Looks like there was a pretty productive meet with the Uzbek President Islam Karomov.

India, Uzbekistan discuss Afghanistan; announce strategic relationship
New Delhi, May 18 (IANS) India and the Central Asian republic of Uzbekistan Monday upgraded their bilateral ties to a strategic relationship, and held discussions on the precarious situation in Afghanistan.

This was announced after the end of discussions between Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Uzbek President Islam Karimov here Wednesday.

Karimov, who arrived Tuesday evening, is on a two-day state visit to India.

Both leaders 'agreed to elevate the bilateral relationship to a long term and strategic partnership based on equality and mutual understanding', a press release issued by he ministry of external affairs said.

'The partnership envisages active cooperation in a wide spectrum of areas including political, counter-terrorism, economic, education, health, human resource development, energy, science and technology, tourism and culture,' it said.

The press note also stated that both leaders had a 'detailed discussion' on the 'continuing unstable situation' in Afghanistan. They also 'underlined the importance of early establishment of peace and stability in the country'.

Manmohan Singh, who was on short visit to Afghanistan last week, also shared his 'perspectives' on the war-ravaged nation.

Terrorism also featured in the talks, with both leaders condemning it 'in all its forms and manifestations'. Both leaders agreed that the Indo-Uzbek joint working group, which has been holding consultations on the subject, will continue.

Besides, both of them also held discussions on various regional and international issues. 'They noted and welcomed a strong similarity of outlook on bilateral, as well as, as a host of regional and global issues,' said the press note.

As many as 34 bilateral agreements were signed at the meeting, which covered varied area from science and technology, textiles, oil and gas and pharmaceuticals.

A joint statement was also released at the conclusion of the visit.

One of the significant memorandum of understanding signed in textiles, with Uzbekistan being a major producer of cotton at over one million tonnes per annum.

Besides, an agreement to amend the 1993 bilateral treaty on avoidance of double taxation was also signed.

Uzbekistan reaffirmed support for India's candidature for permanent membership in an expanded UN Security Council.

The two sides also resolved to expand their cooperation within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

India is currently an observer at the SCO and is keen to become a member of the six-nation Central Asian organisation.