WB Views Development Of TITR As Key To Central Asia's Connectivity (Exclusive)

(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) ALMATY, Kazakhstan, December 9. The World Bank considers the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR, or Middle Corridor) as one of the most important directions in the issue of Central Asia connectivity, the regional projects coordinator of the World Bank's regional office in Central Asia, Dmitry Petrin, told Trend following a session of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) in Almaty, Trend reports.

"The World Bank considers the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route as one of the most important and priority areas in the issue of connectivity of Central Asia and other regions. We have conducted a study on the economic potential of this route and plan to further detail and expand the economic analysis of the potential and trade volume in 2025. Of course, we are ready to support this activity together with other international organizations if the countries of the region decide to do so," Petrin said.

According to him, the conducted research demonstrates that the efficiency and economic attractiveness of the TITR increases significantly if it is seen not as a purely transit route from China to Europe but rather as a way to strengthen cooperation between Central Asian countries in the broad sense of the word-first of all, between the South Caucasus region and Central Asia, and between Türkiye and Central Asia, and indeed, within Central Asia itself.

"From our point of view, this route should be seen not as a transit route but as an integration project. In this sense, in our opinion, the coordination of the Central Asian countries is of fundamental importance to determine together and jointly the most economically beneficial and economically feasible routes of transportation arteries, which are now being discussed to ensure that they do not compete with each other but complement each other," Petrin said.

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