TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Minister of Roads and Urban Development Farzaneh Sadeq unveiled plans for a tentative project to run passenger trains between Iran and Turkmenistan, saying the route may extend as far as Uzbekistan. - Economy news - Sadeq visited Ashgabat last week to attend the conference on “International Year of Peace and Trust: The Triumph of Permanent Neutrality of Turkmenistan”.

She also held meetings with senior Turkmen officials on the sidelines of the event.Giving a report on her meetings with the Turkmen authorities, Sadeq said arrangements have been made for a pilot project to run a passenger train between Iran and Turkmenistan.She noted that the train is planned to connect Iran’s northeastern city of Mashhad to Sarakhs at the common border and to Merv in Turkmenistan as soon as the expert studies are conducted and the Joint Economic Commission approves the plan.The Iranian minister also raised the possibility of extending the passenger rail route to Uzbekistan.She stated that fewer than 200 freight cars are currently used by the cargo trains between Iran and Turkmenistan, saying agreements have been made to increase the number of cars to 400 in the near future.Sadeq added that one of the major achievements of her trip to Turkmenistan was the conclusion of plans for a meeting of the Joint Economic Commission in Tehran within the next two months.She expressed hope that the upcoming meeting would help strengthen the economic ties between Iran and Turkmenistan and also the other Central Asian nations.