Railways of Afghanistan

Design studies for the second Turkmenistan – Afghanistan railway line have been completed, and work will start “soon”, the Afghan President’s office reports following a meeting between Presidents Karzai and Berdimuhamedov in Türkmenbaşy on 25 January 2012.

… President Karzai met Wednesday morning President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov to discuss a number of important economic projects including the TAPI, the Afghan-Turkmenistan railway and electricity export to Afghanistan.
[...]
Accompanying the President on the trip was Afghan Mining Minister, who said a design and full study of a separate project involving the establishment of an 84 km of railway extending across the Atamyrat-Ymamnazar in Turkmenistan to Akina-Andhoi in Afghanistan had been finalized with actual work expected to begin soon.

Source: Afghan and Turkmen Presidents Vow to Implement Critical Projects, Office of the President, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, 26 January 2012

From Turkmenistan comes this report:

The Presidents also noted the great potential of cooperation in transportation and communications sector. They discussed the project on construction of the railway Atamyrat-Ymamnazar-Akin-Andhoy. A framework agreement on construction of this railway was signed during the official visit by the President of Turkmenistan to Afghanistan in May 2011. According to the interlocutors, construction and commissioning of the new railway will not only serve the development of transport infrastructure in Afghanistan but can become a significant element in the regional and international transit transportation in the long term.
Source: Turkmen-Afghan high level talks held in Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan.ru, 26 January 2012

Here is a map I put together previously:

View Turkmenistan – Andkhoy railway plan in a larger map

Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai made an official visit to Turkmenistan on 28 May 2011. He discussed the Atamurat to Andkhoy railway proposal with Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, and a “framework agreement” on its construction was signed.

A rather magnificently wordy report on the visit was published the following day by the official new agency “Turkmenistan: the golden age”:

President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov invited his Afghan counterpart to enter the Golden Hall where the one to one top level talks were held.
[...]
Along with natural wealth, including abundant energy resources, Turkmenistan situated on transport routes from north to south and from east to west had the profound potential for collaboration in the transit transport sector due to its geographical location. In this contest the Turkmen leader dwelt upon the aspects of bilateral cooperation on the construction of a railway line from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan. In this context President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov expressed belief that this railway would facilitate freight traffic in the Asian region and all over the world.
[...]
[Karzai noted that] Currently, the construction of a railway line that would connect our states was being negotiated.
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After the ceremony of signing documents was concluded, the leaders of Turkmenistan and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan entered the Bayram Khan Hall where they held a press conference.
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Expressing profound gratitude to President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov for paying much attention to the aspects of intergovernmental cooperation, the distinguished guest put particular emphasis on the Resolution issued by the national leader Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov aimed at increasing electricity exports to Afghanistan and the initiative of the leader of the Turkmen state to build a railway line from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan.
[...]
After the talks with the participation of the government delegations were concluded the ceremony of signing the bilateral document took place in the Seljuk Khan Hall.

These included [...] the Framework Agreement on the construction of the Atamurat-Ymamnazar (Turkmenistan)-Akina-Andhoi (the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan) between the Government of Turkmenistan and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan;
[...]
Upon concluding the official reception, the leaders of the two states bade farewell cordially to each other expressing satisfaction with the outcomes of the talks and exchanged the best wishes to the brotherly nations.

Source: Talks between President of Turkmenistan and President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, State News Agency of Turkmenistan, 2011-05-29.

Here is a map I made for a previous posting on the project:

View Turkmenistan – Andkhoy railway plan in a larger map