Pakistan has assured Uzbekistan of providing access to its two ports, Karachi and Gwadar, a move that would provide a cheap transit alternative to Uzbekistan which currently rellies in Iran’s Bandar Abbas port. 

During the two-day visit of Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Kamilov to Pakistan, Imran Khan said Pakistani ports could become “the gateway to the landlocked Central Asia as Pakistan provides Central Asian Republics the shortest route to international seas.

Earlier, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan had signed an agreement to build a 600 km trans-Afghan rail line from Mazar-e-Sharif to Pehswar via Kabul. The $4.8 billion project has the backing of the World Bank. However, the prevailing political instability and insurgency in Afghanistan could become a spoiler for the project. 

Another alternative route Uzbekistan is planning goes through China and then Pakistan via Karakorum Pass. This route is being considered to bypass Afghanistan. 

Interestingly, in the last few years, Uzbekistan has also been engaging with the Taliban’s political leadership regarding their projects in Afghanistan in what is being seen as seeking assurance for the safety of their investment.