Speech by Commissioner Urpilainen at the high-level launch of the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor Coordination Platform.
“Check against delivery”
Your Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
It is a great pleasure for me to be here today, as we come together for the high-level launch of the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor Coordination Platform.
Allow me to begin by expressing my gratitude to the Government of Turkmenistan for their generous hospitality in hosting us on such a significant occasion, and to Director General Chakyev for his opening remarks.
I also want to extend my appreciation to all the participants, for their presence and commitment in supporting this important coordination effort.
In today’s environment, fraught with conflicts and crises that also impact the security of transport and trade, our future stability hinges on fostering strong, trustworthy, and resilient relationships.
I am glad to see that the EU, the Corridor countries and the other present stakeholders are firmly advancing this objective together.
In my remarks today, I would like to focus on three key points:
First, the importance of connectivity – the core of the EU Global Gateway Strategy, as well as a key element in our partnership with Central Asia, South Caucasus and Türkiye.
Second, the centrality of transport in this agenda, namely with the development of the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor.
And third, the significance of the Coordination Platform we are launching today.
Connectivity is a key element in the EU’s action, both within its borders and in its partnerships, including the one with Central Asia, South Caucasus and Türkiye.
Connectivity is about networks, but also the flow of people, goods, services and capital that pass through them.
Investing in connectivity will foster not only sustainable economic growth but also deeper political and cultural ties between our regions. That’s why connectivity lies at the heart of the EU Global Gateway Strategy.
Central Asia, as a region at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, plays a pivotal role in the Global Gateway vision and transport connectivity occupies a central role in our partnership.
This leads me to my second point: the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor.
In June 2023, we published the Study on Sustainable Transport Connections between Europe and Central Asia.
The Study showed that despite challenges, the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor has the potential to handle more land-based trade, unlocking new economic opportunities for both regions, and all countries along the route.
It outlined a vision for the Corridor that transcends a simple linear route, presenting it, instead, as an interconnected network..
Evidently, this Corridor is ambitious. It spans thousands of kilometers and two seas as it makes its way from Asia to Europe, and vice-versa.
In order to harness its potential, the infrastructure investments in the years to come will require substantial financing.
That’s why I am pleased to see key International Financing Institutions, EU Member States, G7 countries and other partners who are part of the Platform joining us today.
Based on the positive findings of the Study, the EU-Central Asia Transport Investors Forum, held in January, generated commitments for a remarkable 10 billion euro investment package of ongoing and planned investments.
With these elements in place – proven potential, substantial funding, and political will – our vision for enhanced connectivity is now well within reach, ready to be translated into tangible actions.
And now, my third and final point – the very reason we have gathered here today: the launch of the Coordination Platform in the presence of Transport Ministers.
The Platform was already put on tracks in Astana this past June, with the objective of advancing the work at senior officials’ level.
Our vision of a Corridor will need continuous political leadership and steer. Today, we give the Coordination Platform a political impetus.
The Coordination Platform gathers all stakeholders concerned with developing the infrastructure but also the necessary regulatory frameworks and cross-border collaboration in a consistent and coordinated manner.
Concretely, it establishes an appropriate forum for stakeholders to transparently assess and advance priority projects, create synergies and join forces.
We work in close alignment with the existing coordination structure led by the US Government, which focuses on soft connectivity and held its first technical level meeting in Aktau in Kazakhstan a couple of weeks back.
All the institutions, governments and organisations gathered here today have a contribution to make in the efficient realisation of the Coordination Platform – and of the Corridor as a whole.
But importantly, crucial to its success will also be the robust engagement of the private sector – from the outset.
Your Excellencies, Distinguished Guests,
Now more than ever, in this era of shifting global powers and rising challenges, it has become clear that we must draw closer together.
I am hopeful that connectivity will shape our shared future, just as it did during the era of the Great Silk Road.
The Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor has the potential to serve not only as a means for economic development and connectivity, but also as a channel for the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and innovation – benefiting people and businesses along and around its route.
Source – EU Commission