Kazakhstan Deputy Prime Minister Serik Zhumangarin stated at the negotiations in Afghanistan that the republic is ready to participate in the construction of the trans-Afghanistan railway. The parties also discussed the possibility of resuming air traffic between the countries, the press service of the government of Kazakhstan reported.
According to her information Jumangarin at a meeting with the deputy prime minister of the government formed by the Taliban movement (banned in the Russian Federation), Abdul Ghani Baradar indicated the readiness of the country to “participate in the implementation of projects for the development of the Trans-Afghan corridor: the construction of Termez - Mazar-i-Sharif - Kabul - Peshawar and Herat - Kandahar Railways - Spin Buldak.“ It is noted that Kazakhstan is ready to supply materials for the railway line.
The parties also discussed the possibility of resuming air traffic. As part of the memorandum of understanding between the aviation authorities of Kazakhstan and Afghanistan, the countries' air carriers are allowed to operate 3 scheduled passenger or cargo flights per week. The Kazakh side is ready to consider this issue upon receiving applications from Afghan airlines, the press service indicated.
Earlier, the Afghan authorities announced that the work on the feasibility study of the project to build the trans-Afghan railway line will be completed by July 2024, when it will be presented to global companies for implementation.
In February 2021, Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Afghanistan signed a plan for the construction of the Trans-Afghan railway Termez - Mazar-e-Sharif - Kabul - Peshawar. The implementation of the project with a length of about 600 km was expected to take five years and about $5 billion. The new transport corridor was supposed to connect the EU, Russia, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and further the countries of Southeast Asia. .
After the Taliban came to power in August 2021, the implementation of the project was delayed due to a lack of funds.