The document is aimed at further development of transportation by North-South corridor

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Industry and Infrastructure Development of Kazakhstan on 22 May 2023 in Kazan, at the XIV International Economic Forum "Russia – the Islamic World: KazanForum", says press center of RF Transport Ministry.

The document was signed by Dmitry Zverev, State Secretary — Deputy Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation, and Dinara Shcheglova, Deputy Minister of Industry and Infrastructure Development of Kazakhstan.

“The MoU will give an impetus to further development of transportation by the international transport corridor North-South and will strengthen cooperation between Russia and Kazakhstan in transport segment,” reads the statement.

North-South international transport corridor (ITC) is a 7,200-kilometre-long transport artery from St Petersburg to ports in Iran and India. North-South ITC has a western and an eastern branch, both running across Iran. The western one foresees cargo transportation by road via Rasht, the eastern one – by railway. The end point in Iran is the port of Bandar Abbas from which cargo can be delivered to India by sea. The western branch also crosses Azerbaijan, the eastern one – Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Besides, direct water transportation from Russia to Iran by the Caspian Sea is possible.

The volume of Russian cargo transported by the North-South ITC is expected to double by 2030, from the current 17 million tonnes to 32 million tonnes.

Cargo traffic on the international transport corridor North-South ITC can reach 35 million tonnes by 2030, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Marat Khusnullin said on 18 May 2023. Previously, it was expected to reach 32 million tonnes.