DUSHANBE, June 9, 2014, Asia-Plus — Issues related to shipment of cargo through the Poti seaport (Georgia) were discussed here at the end of last week at a meeting of Tajik Deputy Minister of Transport Sherali Ganjalov with Georgia’s Ambassador to Tajikistan Konstantin Zhgenti, according to the Ministry of Transport (MoT) press center.
The sides reportedly also discussed cooperation on transportation of freights by rail and through the Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia (TRASECA).
An official source at a MoT says Tajik companies have used the Poti seaport for shipment of cargo for a long time. “Mainly Tajik primary aluminum has been transported through the Poti seaport to Europe and alumina has been transported to Tajikistan through this seaport,” the source said.
The Poti seaport is a cross point of the Trans-Caucasian Corridor/TRACECA, a multinational project which connects the Romanian port of Constanta and Bulgarian port Varna with the landlocked countries of the Caspian region and Central Asia.
Established in 1993, TRACECA (Transport Corridor Europe-Caucasus-Asia) is an international transport program involving the European Union and 14 member States of the Eastern European, Caucasian and Central Asian region. It has a permanent Secretariat, originally financed by the European Commission, in Baku, Azerbaijan, and a regional office in Odessa, Ukraine. Since 2009 the organization has been entirely financed by member countries.
The following states participate in the TRACECA program: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Moldova, Romania, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
