UN BODY CONSIDERS DRAFT AGREEMENT ON TRANS-ASIAN RAIL PROJECT
Asia Pulse;
Apr 13, 2006
TASHKENT, April 13 Asia Pulse – A draft agreement on cooperation
for the Trans-Asian Railway (TAR) project was presented in a
ministerial-level roundtable dialogue being held in Jakarta on Tuesday.
The move was part of the six-day 62nd Session of the United Nations
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).
UNESCAP Executive Secretary Kim Hak-Su said in his remarks that
through various technical and knowledge advices, the UN body was
helping member states to develop efficient regional and international
transportation network, improve infrastructure and promote sustainable
tourism development in national, sub-regional and regional levels.
The draft of the TAR cooperation agreement, which was being discussed
in the meeting, was the final one and the signing of the agreement
was expected to be conducted in November 2006.
One of UNESCAP’s important agendas was to help modernize avenues and
railways in Asia under the Program of Transportation Infrastructure
Development in Asian Mainland.
The Trans-Asian Railway was first initiated in the 1960s and expected
to link up a total distance of 14,000km, from Singapore to Istanbul
(Turkey), and could be continued to Europe and Africa later.
However, the programme has faced a number of problems such as
regional conflicts which affected economic policy in implementing
the TAR programme.
A study was conducted in 1995 to look at a railway network connecting
China, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, and Korean Peninsula. A year
later, the study continued to Southeast Asia covering Indonesia,
Cambodia, Lao, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
The Southern corridor of the Trans-Asian Railway, which will connect
Thailand and China’s Yunnan Province with Turkey, and will pass
Myanmar, Bangladesh, India Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Iran, was studied
in 1999.
In 2001, a study was conducted to look at the final corridor, which
will connect northern Europe and the Persian Gulf, and will pass
Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Finland, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan,
Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Negotiations and finalization of the draft cooperation agreement on
the Trans-Asian Railway Network was carried out from 1997 to 2005.