Afghanistan Taliban PM Akhund meets Turkmen FM, discusses TAPI Project

Kabul [Afghanistan], October 30 (ANI): Taliban Prime Minister Mullah Hassan Akhund met with visiting Turkmen Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov on Saturday, during which they discussed the construction of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) Gas Pipeline Project in Afghanistan's terrain.
The two sides also discussed issues related to a number of Afghan-Turkmen joint projects, fibre optic and railway projects, according to the statement by the General Directorate for Administrative Affairs of the President Office.
The key regional project is expected to transit gas from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, with Afghanistan getting about 500 million US dollars a year as royalty and thousands of Afghans are expected to find work from the project.
The TAPI project is supported by the United States and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). It proposed to lay a 56-inch diameter and 1,680-kilometre pipeline with a capacity of transporting 33 billion cubic meters (BCM) of natural gas per annum from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan and Fazilka near the India-Pakistan border.
The long-lasting war and insecurity had caused a delay in the inauguration of the TAPI project which was expected to be completed in 2020. The Afghan and Turkmen sides have resumed talks on the topic with prevailing security
The ADB is acting as the facilitator and coordinator for the project.
According to the statement, Meredov said that Turkmenistan was ready to provide humanitarian aid to Afghans and help them in the implementation of economic projects.
"Implementation of the joint projects would be helpful for the people of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan and would enhance the regional cooperation," he was quoted in the statement as saying. (ANI)