Tripartite working group finalizes UAP rail route

The tripartite working group of the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (UAP) Railways project met at at the Ministry of Railways in Islamabad on Monday.

Syed Mazhar Ali Shah, Secretary/Chairman of Pakistan Railways led the Pakistani side whereas Afghanistan was represented by Alhaj Bakhtulrehman Sharaft, Director General and CEO of Afghanistan Railways Authority and Dekhkanov DT, Head of the Transport Department of the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade represented Uzbekistan.

The working group finalized the route of the project in today’s meeting. The signing ceremony of the Joint Protocol will take place on 18th July 2023. The key objective of the UAP project is to build a missing rail link by connecting Uzbekistan railways with Pakistan railways via Termiz- Mazar e Sharif-Logar- Kharlachi route.

The UAP railway project would not only facilitate the regional, transit, and bilateral trade amongst the participating countries, but also provide better people-to-people connections to the entire region. The line will support both passenger and freight services and would contribute to regional trade and economic growth.

The parties also agreed on a roadmap for conducting technical studies, financing sources, and other key aspects for the early implementation of the project.

The parties appreciated the professional work of the experts of the three railways in achieving consensus on the final route and its implementation modalities.