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LANDLOCKED CENTRAL ASIA UP TO CONNECT WORLD'S BIGGEST
PLAYERS
Azamkhujaev Umidkhon
PhD student at University of World Economy and Diplomacy (Tashkent,
Uzbekistan); E-mail:
umid.uzbek@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13443520
Transportation, which is critical in all economies, is doubly important for
the economies of landlocked countries whose economic development is linked
to the possibility of access to the sea. Since two-thirds of the earth's surface is
water, transportation by sea is the most extensive, accessible and cheapest. For
the world's 32 landlocked developing countries[1], coastal states are an
invaluable link in the transport chain.
While international law traditionally recognizes the rights of every
landlocked country to free access to the sea for expanding international trade
and economic development[2], in practice, it’s a different situation. Landlocked
countries have to fight for the right to free access to the sea in order to
participate in international trade. Leading international lawyers believe that the
transit law of landlocked countries is not a principle recognized by international
law, but rather a law governed by agreements concluded with coastal states[3].
All Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan, are among the
landlocked countries, and therefore face problems with access to global markets.
In this regard, Uzbekistan has focused its foreign policy on the development of
international transport corridors leading to seaports within the framework of
regional economic integration.
The most ambitious is the Trans-Afghan Transport Corridor project,
promoted by Uzbekistan in partnership with Pakistan and Afghanistan. The
project was announced by the countries in 2021, and involves the construction
of the Termez-Mazar-i-Sharif-Kabul-Peshawar railway, which will provide the
closest and cheapest corridor connecting Pakistan to Central Asia, and
Uzbekistan to the Pakistani ports of Karachi, Gwadar and Qasim.
Uzbekistan, also does not recognize the current Afghanistan as a full-
fledged subject of international law like all countries of the world, however,
demonstrating its commitment to following Article 55 of the UN Charter,
Uzbekistan continues to cooperate with Afghanistan for the sake of stability,
prosperity, economic and social development of the region, as well as in
transport and transit. Uzbekistan draws the attention of the whole world to the
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extreme importance of preventing the isolation of Afghanistan, and the need to
integrate Afghanistan into interregional economic processes[4].
Another significant result is a trilateral agreement about the construction
of the China-Kyrgystan-Uzbekistan railway signed in 2022, which is focused on
construction of the missing part of Kyrgyz section of the road, that should
connect the already existing railways in China and Uzbekistan.
The search for alternative transport routes bypassing Russia is prompting
the European Union to work out routes through Central Asia. This idea is not
new, the idea of connecting Europe and Central Asia with transport corridors
originated in 1993, when the European Union established the program
"Transport Corridor Europe-Asia-Caucasus (TRACECA)". The main goal was to
create and develop a transport corridor from Europe through the Black Sea and
further through the Caucasus and the Caspian Sea to Central Asia[5].
It is important to note that Central Asia has changed in recent years,
becoming more open and showing serious efforts to integrate within the region,
proclaiming this on the world stage[7]. The current Central Asia is aware that
the geographical location of the countries of the region does not allow to
implement large-scale projects along transport corridors on their own. Any
route requires the assistance of several, and otherwise all, states of Central Asia.
It’s time to consider the unified transport network of Central Asia, laid out in the
Soviet period as a single network with routes passing through the countries as a
big benefit, contributing to regional integration.
In this light, attention should be paid to the efforts of Uzbekistan,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan within the framework of the Organization of Turkic
States (OTG). In 2022, in Samarkand (Uzbekistan), the Trade Facilitation
Strategy of the OTG was approved by the member states, and the Agreement on
the Formation of Simplified Customs Corridors was signed.
Teamed with Turkey, the sixths largest trading partner of the European
Union[7], and also considering the existence of a functioning transport corridor
"Baku - Tbilisi - Kars" with direct access to Europe, it can be confidently
assumed that the OTG is the best platform for the countries of Central Asia to
develop international transport corridors towards Europe.
If the European Union decides to participate in the project, this will
fundamentally change all circumstances and encourage China, the second largest
trading partner and largest importer for the European Union, to accelerate the
construction of the railway and find the best solution of project funding.
Undoubtedly, access to the European market via a shorter route through Central
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Asia will not leave indifferent the ASEAN, the third largest trade partner of the
European Union.
As for the countries of Central Asia, the prospect of access to global markets, the
influx of considerable investments, the modernization and development of
transport infrastructure, as well as the enormous replenishment of budgets from
transit between the three largest economies of the world, will push to unite as a
team, and maybe within the OTG. Maybe today's Central Asia understands that
this is the most realistic chance to change the region's history
References:
1.
List of Landlocked Developing Countries (according to UN).
https://www.un.org/ohrlls/content/list-lldcs
2.
Resolution of UN General Assembly A/RES/1028 (XI) “Land-Locked
Countries and the Expansion of International Trade”. Adopted by UN General
Assembly on 20 February 1957
3.
Kishor Uprety. The Transit Regime for Landlocked States. 2006 The
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank. P.
27-28.
4.
Resolution of UN General Assembly A/RES/76/295 “Strengthening
connectivity between Central and South Asia”. Adopted by the General Assembly
on 11 July 2022. https://www.un.org/en/ga/76/resolutions.shtml
5.
Joint Study on the Development of Euro-Asian Transport Links by the
Economic Commission for Europe and the Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific. Made by the Publishing Service, United Nations, Geneva —
GE.07-26716 — February 2008 — 1,400 — ECE/TRANS/184
6.
Resolution of UN General Assembly A/RES/76/299 “Zone of peace, trust
and cooperation of Central Asia”. Adopted by the General Assembly on 28 July
2022. https://www.un.org/en/ga/76/resolutions.shtml
7.
EU trade relations with Türkiye. https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/eu-
trade-relationships-country-and-region/countries-and-
regions/turkiye_en#:~:text=The%20EU%20is%20by%20far,amounted%20to%
20%E2%82%AC132.4%20billion.
