Afghan and Turkmen Officials Discuss Accelerating TAPI Pipeline Land Acquisition

Officials from Afghanistan and Turkmenistan met to discuss speeding up land acquisition and pricing for the TAPI gas pipeline project, which will transport Turkmen gas through Afghanistan to Pakistan and India.

Murad Amanov, head of the TAPI project, Ataullah Omari, Afghanistan's Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, and Khwaja Avazov, Turkmenistan's ambassador to Kabul, addressed the issue, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock. Amanov stressed the need to accelerate land acquisition stages based on the framework agreement among the four countries.

Separately, ships from the Azerbaijan Shipping Company have begun transporting pipes for the project from Baku port to Turkmenbashi port. About 11,700 pipes are planned for delivery by year-end to prepare for construction.

Afghanistan's Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation announced the transfer of eight export consignments via the Lajvard corridor from Torghundi port on Sunday, 24 Hoot. The shipments, including dried fruits, jam, pressure cookers and energy drinks, will travel through Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey before reaching markets in Saudi Arabia, the United States, Australia and the Netherlands. The ministry highlighted efforts to develop transit corridors and support exports.

In Herat province, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in cooperation with the Islamic Development Bank, inaugurated the region's largest carpet weaving center. The facility, opened in the presence of Indrika Ratwatte, deputy special representative of the UN Secretary-General, and local elders, initially provides jobs and skills training for 400 Afghan returnees, more than three-quarters of them women. UNHCR noted that over 2 million Afghans returned from Iran last year, and the center aims to create economic opportunities.

Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev ratified a preferential trade agreement with Afghanistan, signed on June 10, 2025, at the Tashkent International Investment Forum by Afghanistan's Minister of Industry and Commerce.