After Turkmenistan opens a trade and logistics center in the Astrakhan port special economic zone, it may become a major transport hub on the Caspian Sea, Ilya Volynsky, Minister of Industry, Trade and Energy of Russia’s Astrakhan region told in an interview with GTRK Lotos TV news channel on Sunday.
He also stressed that the project of the Turkmen center in Astrakhan port has noticeably expanded.
"It's not just about delivering Turkmen goods through Astrakhan, distributing them across Russia and, accordingly, exporting Russian goods to Turkmenistan," Ilya Volynsky said during the interview.
The Astrakhan official believes that goods from China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan can be transported through the Turkmen port of Turkmenbashi to Russia via the Caspian Sea.
In the end of January, The Transport and Logistics Center of Turkmenistan Open Joint Stock Company and the Joint Stock Company "Special Economic Zone "Lotos" (Russian Federation) signed a Memorandum of intent on implementation of the investment project on creation of the logistics center of Turkmenistan in the special economic zone at the Astrakhan port.
