Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will embark on a day-long visit to Kabul to sign the Framework Agreement on the Joint Feasibility Study for the Uzbekistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (UAP) Railway Project, the Foreign Office (FO) said on Thursday.
In 2023, the three countries agreed on the UAP Railway project to build a rail link, which will pass through Termiz in Uzbekistan, Mazar-i-Sharif and Logar in Afghanistan and enter Pakistan via the Kharlachi border crossing in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The project will facilitate regional, transit, and bilateral trade amongst participating countries, while supporting both passenger and freight services.
“The railway project aims to build a rail link to connect Uzbekistan with Pakistan via Afghanistan and facilitate access to Pakistani seaports for Central Asian States,” the FO statement said.
“By facilitating regional trade and transit, the project is expected to promote regional stability, growth and development.”
It added that the agreement between the three participating countries will be an “important step towards its implementation”.
Dar will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising Railways Minister Hanif Abbasi, the special representative for Afghanistan, and the secretary of the Ministry of Railways, per the statement.
“During the visit, the deputy prime minister (Dar) will also hold a meeting with the Afghan acting foreign minister and will call on [the] acting prime minister of Afghanistan to discuss bilateral matters and exchange views on regional and international developments,” it said.
Earlier this month, Dar spoke with Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov and discussed progress on the Framework Agreement for the project.
In June, Pakistan and Uzbekistan decided to begin work on the trilateral railway transit corridor project, describing it as a milestone for regional economic growth and stronger trade ties.
