ResurgentIran
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Earlier this month, the presidents of Iran, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan inaugurated a railway that runs from western Kazakhstan to northern Iran. In an email interview, Erica Johnson, lecturer and director of masters studies in global studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill discussed infrastructure projects in Central Asia.
WPR: What obstacles, both political and technological, had to be overcome to construct the railway between Iran and Turkmenistan?
Erica Johnson: Because of the 2008 global financial crisis, Kazakhstan put the railway project on hold for 18 months. In addition to financing from the three participating countries, the Asian Development Bank financed a section between Bereket and Buzhan in Turkmenistan and the Islamic Development Bank extended a loan in July 2010. The project was also implemented in a challenging geopolitical environment. The railroad offers Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan an alternative to Soviet-era rail lines that transit to Russia, thus weakening Russia’s economic influence in the Central Asian region. In addition, the U.S. and NATO military presence in Afghanistan both motivated the project and made implementation more sensitive to U.S. responses.
WPR: What are the expected economic benefits of the railway?
Johnson: The new rail line links the landlocked Central Asian region with Iran, the Middle East and Russian markets. It is now the shortest railway connecting the three states, making for faster and cheaper transit. International estimates generally find rail freight costs to be 10 percent of road freight costs and significantly lower and faster than the sea options through the Suez Canal. The main goods to be transported via the railway will be oil and other energy products, Kazakh grain and agricultural products, Turkmen cotton and cheap Chinese goods for markets in Central Asia, Iran and beyond. Estimates suggest that by 2020, 10 percent of trade between China and Europe will be transported via inland rail and road routes, which would be a boon to Central Asian states along those routes.
WPR: What other major infrastructure projects are planned in Central Asia, and how do they fit with the railway?
Johnson: The Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railroad was developed as part of the “North-South Transportation Corridor,” which envisions increased rail, road and sea connections between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf, South and Southeast Asia and Europe. The United States, Europe, China, Iran and Russia all seek influence over transportation infrastructure in Central Asia. Numerous infrastructure projects are proposed or underway to link Afghanistan and Central Asia with the railroad networks of China, Russia, Pakistan and the Middle East. The Northern Distribution Network, for example, plans to convert NATO’s military distribution system into a civilian railroad that connects Baltic and Caspian ports with Afghanistan, Pakistan and India via Russia, Central Asia and the Caucasus. China has proposed infrastructure projects to open landlocked Central Asia. For example, negotiations on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan rail, the “Silk Road Railroad” initially proposed in 1997, have seen significant progress in recent years. Iran also has proposed additional infrastructure projects throughout Central Asia, especially road linkages connecting the Islamic Republic with Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
Iran-Turkmenistan Railway Could Shift Balance of Power in Central Asia
WPR: What obstacles, both political and technological, had to be overcome to construct the railway between Iran and Turkmenistan?
Erica Johnson: Because of the 2008 global financial crisis, Kazakhstan put the railway project on hold for 18 months. In addition to financing from the three participating countries, the Asian Development Bank financed a section between Bereket and Buzhan in Turkmenistan and the Islamic Development Bank extended a loan in July 2010. The project was also implemented in a challenging geopolitical environment. The railroad offers Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan an alternative to Soviet-era rail lines that transit to Russia, thus weakening Russia’s economic influence in the Central Asian region. In addition, the U.S. and NATO military presence in Afghanistan both motivated the project and made implementation more sensitive to U.S. responses.
WPR: What are the expected economic benefits of the railway?
Johnson: The new rail line links the landlocked Central Asian region with Iran, the Middle East and Russian markets. It is now the shortest railway connecting the three states, making for faster and cheaper transit. International estimates generally find rail freight costs to be 10 percent of road freight costs and significantly lower and faster than the sea options through the Suez Canal. The main goods to be transported via the railway will be oil and other energy products, Kazakh grain and agricultural products, Turkmen cotton and cheap Chinese goods for markets in Central Asia, Iran and beyond. Estimates suggest that by 2020, 10 percent of trade between China and Europe will be transported via inland rail and road routes, which would be a boon to Central Asian states along those routes.
WPR: What other major infrastructure projects are planned in Central Asia, and how do they fit with the railway?
Johnson: The Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran railroad was developed as part of the “North-South Transportation Corridor,” which envisions increased rail, road and sea connections between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf, South and Southeast Asia and Europe. The United States, Europe, China, Iran and Russia all seek influence over transportation infrastructure in Central Asia. Numerous infrastructure projects are proposed or underway to link Afghanistan and Central Asia with the railroad networks of China, Russia, Pakistan and the Middle East. The Northern Distribution Network, for example, plans to convert NATO’s military distribution system into a civilian railroad that connects Baltic and Caspian ports with Afghanistan, Pakistan and India via Russia, Central Asia and the Caucasus. China has proposed infrastructure projects to open landlocked Central Asia. For example, negotiations on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan rail, the “Silk Road Railroad” initially proposed in 1997, have seen significant progress in recent years. Iran also has proposed additional infrastructure projects throughout Central Asia, especially road linkages connecting the Islamic Republic with Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
Iran-Turkmenistan Railway Could Shift Balance of Power in Central Asia
