Ashgabat Agreement.
India has recently joined the Ashgabat Agreement, which was signed in April 2011 to establish an international multi modal transport and transit corridor between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf. The agreement was first signed on 25 April 2011 by Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan,Iran, Oman and Qatar. After that Qatar pulled out of the agreement in 2013, while Kazakhstan and Pakistan joined it in 2016. The Ashgabat Agreement came into force in April 2016. It aims to increase connectivity with in the Eurasian region and it with other regional transport corridors, including the International North & South Transport Corridor ( INSTC ).
Importance
India's participation in the Ashgabat Agreement will enable it to use its existing transport and transit corridor,which will facilitate trade and commercial connectivity with Eurasian countries. In addition,it offers good connectivity to INSTC
support India's efforts for the implementation of The Iran-Turkmenistan-Kazakhstan (ITK) rail line will be a major route under the Ashgabat Agreement.In general, India's participation in the Ashgabat Agreement will make it easier for it to reach Central Asia where strategic and valuable minerals including uranium, copper,titanium, iron alloys, yellow phosphorous, iron ore,propane, butane, zinc, coking coal, etc.It is a store house of minerals.Central Asian without direct transport route to India countries required for their manufacturing Unable to get raw material.Currently, India's trade with Central Asia is just a little over $1 billion and is not growing much. India's trade with this region is only 0.11 percent of India's total trade and India's contribution to the total trade of Central Asia is only about one percent. Commercial ties with the region can be strengthened only by improving transport connectivity.
