Silk Road: News, Events, Articles

The section of the Great Silk Road running across the territory of present-day Uzbekistan is often called the "golden length", which can be easily accounted for. Just remember the analogous phrase "golden mile" used to name the central and most prestigious section of a highway. For centuries these lands, located in the centre of the ancient trade highway, were intersected with the network of caravan trails. Many trade centres of the Great Silk Road had developed in the junction of the routes heading eastwards and westwards. Uzbekistan is a home to more than four thousand monuments of ancient architecture - mausoleums and palaces, madrassahs and mosques, fortresses and architectural ensembles. Due to their great significance for the history of mankind the historical centres of such Uzbek cities as Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva, and Shakhrisabz are included into the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Uzbekistan is to become not only one of the main tourist attractions on the revived Silk Road but also an important transit corridor. This can be achieved with the help of a well-developed transport system which embraces 4 thousand kilometers of motor roads and 3.7 thousand kilometers of railways.

At all times the routes which ran across the Uzbek land were of great importance. But today they have taken on a special significance. The vivid evidence of this is the programme of EU technical assistance to young independent states in realization of TRASECA project aimed at creation of Europe-Caucasus-Asia transport corridor. Of 38 EU projects which have been accomplished within the last decade, Uzbekistan participated in 28. These projects mainly dealt with railway, motor, and combined transportation, legislation and trade issues.

Such an interest to Uzbekistan, which is one of the main transit and communication centers of Eurasian continent, is not confined to exclusively transit potentialities of the country. It is also regarded as the base for investments aimed at consequent export advance of foreign capital to the markets of neighbouring countries. This, in fact, is one of the main reasons why the industrially developed countries are interested in maintaining and promoting the transit potentialities of Uzbekistan.

The external support, as well as Uzbekistan's own activities, have made for considerable changes in the development of railway network and in bringing it to the internationally accepted level. Today railway transport accounts for 66 per cent of the country's cargo transportation.

Certain progress has been achieved in the field of motor roads construction. The main 2500-kilometre-long highway crosses the country from the North-West to the East: from Beynau on the boundary with Kazakhstan to the Kyrghyz boundary in the vicinity of Andijan. This highway has become the integral part of international autobahn Hamburg - Shankhai, which is being completed at present. This new autobahn is to detour big cities. The proposed speed of the traffic will reach 120-150 km per hour. The section of the autobahn running across the flat country will have six-lane traffic, whereas its mountainous section will have four-lane traffic. The most advanced western technologies have been used during the construction of this autobahn.

Attention is paid to the creation along the autobahn of sufficient infrastructure: maintenance shops, filling stations, campings, public catering outlets, etc.

From the first days if its independence Uzbekistan has pursued new ways of entering the world market. With the same consistency it creates the favourable conditions for transit traffic on its territory. In the land where not long ago only camels paced the caravan trails today one can see high-powered locomotives speeding on the rails and numerous cars and trucks crossing deserts and oases along the modern highways. This is strong evidence of the fact that “golden length” of the Great Silk Road has been successfully revived.

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