Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkmenistan to lay gas pipeline

Today in Ashkhabad, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkmenistan have signed an agreement on constructing a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan via Afghanistan. The document was signed by Turkmen President Saparmurat Niyazov, Afghan President Khamid Karzai and Pakistani Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali. The agreement stipulates mechanisms for the creation of a consortium and further management of the gas pipeline.

At a news conference the leaders of the three states declared that they hoped that the project would attract the attention of international financial organizations and investors. They also pointed out that India would be welcomed, if it decided to join the project.

The gas pipeline is planned to be 1,460 kilometers long, from the Dovletabat gas field to the Pakistani city of Multan via Kandagar in Afghanistan. The preliminary cost of the project is $2-3.2bn.