Turkmenistan, Afghanistan officially resume work on TAPI gas pipeline
Date
9/12/2024 4:31:53 AM
(MENAFN) On Wednesday, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan officially resumed work on the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, a major multibillion-dollar infrastructure initiative. The ceremony marking this significant step was held in the Salim Cheshma area of Turkmenistan. The event was attended by notable figures including Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund, acting Prime Minister of the Taliban administration, Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, chairman of Turkmenistan's upper chamber of parliament and former president, and Turkmenistan’s Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov.
During the ceremony, Akhund, along with a high-level delegation including acting deputy Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, was welcomed by Turkmen Foreign Minister Meredov and other officials. Hamdullah Firat, deputy spokesperson for the Afghan Taliban, commented on the resumption of the project, noting that the TAPI pipeline, first proposed during a previous Taliban administration, has faced numerous hurdles over the past twenty-five years. Firat emphasized that the project is now at a critical stage, poised for immediate implementation, and the interim Taliban administration is committed to realizing the aspirations of the Afghan people.
The ceremony also saw the inauguration of several other projects related to oil, gas, energy, and transport sectors. The TAPI pipeline project, initially signed in 2010, faced delays due to technical and financial issues, as well as disputes primarily between Pakistan and India. Although the project was agreed upon for revival in 2015 with a revised deadline of 2017, further delays occurred due to ongoing disagreements among partners and the Taliban's conflict with the US-backed Afghan regime, culminating in the withdrawal of foreign forces and the escape of President Ashraf Ghani in August 2021.
Progress on the TAPI pipeline was further supported by a meeting in Kabul in November 2022, where acting Afghan Foreign Minister Maulvi Amir Khan Muttaqi and Pakistan's former State Minister for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar agreed to move forward with the project. Additionally, Russia has shown interest in participating in the TAPI pipeline, with Russia's special envoy to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, expressing Moscow’s desire to be involved in the initiative during an interview with a Russian TV in January.
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