DUSHANBE, July 18, 2012, Asia-Plus — Compared to January-June of 2012, Tajikistan’s rail freight traffic has fallen more than 15 percent over the first six months of this year, Usmon Qalandarov, deputy director of Tajik Railways, announced at a news conference in Dushanbe on July 18.
Over the report period, Tajik Railways has reportedly shipped little more than 4.1 million tons of cargo, which is 679,000 tons fewer than in the same period last year.
Qalandarov noted that the rail transit traffic has fallen more considerably over the same six-month period – nearly 38 percent. “Rail transit traffic over the report amounted to more than 1.4 million tons, which is 524,000 tons fewer than in January-June of 2011,” Qalandarov said.
According to him, the main reason for the fall in Tajikistan’s rail freight traffic is the Uzbek authorities’ decision to block freight cars heading for southern Tajikistan.
We will recall that explosion that occurred at a rail bridge in Uzbekistan on November 17, 2011 severed southern Tajikistan”s rail connection to the outside world. After a few days of silence, state-controlled Uzbek media characterized the event as a “terrorist act.” Subsequently, outside observers began casting doubt on Tashkent’s claim, with some asserting that Uzbekistan may have sabotaged its own railway in a twisted attempt to economically punish Tajikistan.
Since the incident, the Uzbek authorities have refused Dushanbe’s offers of assistance to repair the bridge.
