On 22 June, Pakistan will send its first freight train to Russia, which will pass through Turkmenistan on the eastern branch of the North-South International Transport Corridor. This was reported by the online publication ‘Business Turkmenistan’.

The train will depart from Lahore and travel through Iran, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to Astrakhan. The total length of the route is about 8,000 kilometres, and the journey time is 20–25 days.

Due to different track gauges, the cargo will be transshipped in Zahedan, Iran. The train will then travel through Turkmenistan, which provides a key link between Iran and Kazakhstan, where a single gauge allows unhindered transit to Russia.

Pakistani Railways Minister Muhammad Hanif Abbasi called the project part of a strategy to develop ties with Central Asia and expand foreign trade.