ASHGABAT: A road and rail corridor connecting war-torn Afgha­nistan with Turkey and Europe was signed off by officials from five countries on Wednesday in Turkmenistan’s capital Ashgabat.

The so-called Lapis Lazuli corridor agreement is the product of more than five years of talks involving Afghanistan and Turkey as well as the ex-Soviet countries Azer­baijan, Georgia and Turkmenistan.

The agreement is focused on integrating customs procedures and stripping away logistical barriers affecting trade between the countries.

The Lapis Lazuli route, named after the brilliant blue semi-precious stone commonly found in Afghanistan, begins in the Afghan settlements of Aqina and finishes at the gateway to Europe in Istanbul.

Freight following the route will have to cross the Caspian Sea after traversing Turkmenistan before linking up with existing road and rail infrastructure in Azerbaijan. Speaking at a regional integration conference focused on Afgha­­­nistan in Ashgabat, Turkey’s deputy foreign minister Ahmet Yildiz said Ankara “welcomed” the trade route.

“This transport and transit corridor allows for the connection of Asia and Europe,” Yildiz said.

Turkmenistan’s trade minister Dovran Orazmyradov said on Tuesday that trade between gas-rich Turkmenistan and Afghanistan had increased 20 per cent last year, reaching $513 million annually.

A railway linking the two countries that has been operational for a year and is part of the Lapis Lazuli corridor, which should boost that figure further.

China is also keen to include Afghanistan in its Belt and Road Initiative that aims to ramp up Eurasian trade through billions of dollars in infrastructural and other investments.

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2017