Uzbekistan attracts EU to participate in projects in Afghanistan

The two–day Central Asia-European Union summit begins in Samarkand on April 3. The heads of state of the region will meet with President of the European Council Charles Michel and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen to discuss the prospects for cooperation. The significant resource potential of Central Asia and its strategically important transport routes attract the attention of global players. The focus of attention is also on neighboring Afghanistan, with its strategic location and the presence of rare earths. For Central Asian countries, partnership with the EU is an opportunity to attract investments and advanced technologies.

The historic Central Asia–EU summit in Samarkand marks a new stage in relations between the two regions, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev said in an interview with European journalists on the eve of the event. The leader of Uzbekistan noted that the EU is actively increasing trade and investment in the region: the trade turnover has quadrupled in seven years, reaching 54 billion euros.

“The Central Asia–EU cooperation format is a unique platform for interaction and has no analogues in terms of its scale and institutional scope. Cooperation with the EU covers a wide range of areas, from economics and investment to sustainable development, security and digital transformation, and is based on long–term strategic priorities. Today, the EU is consistently developing trade and investment ties with the Central Asian states,” Mirziyoyev said.

According to him, Central Asia itself is becoming a key link in global logistics and is shaping its own agenda. The region is crossed by international transport routes – the Trans-Caspian and Trans-Afghan corridors. However, according to the President of Uzbekistan, in order to deepen cooperation, it is necessary to simplify trade procedures, improve access of Central Asian goods to the EU market, harmonize standards and attract European businesses. The region, rich in energy resources and rare earths, can become a reliable partner of the EU in the energy sector and in the supply of uranium, lithium, and antimony. For this, according to Brussels, it is necessary to strengthen the security of the region, especially from neighboring Afghanistan.

However, Tashkent believes that in order to normalize the situation in the neighboring country, it is necessary to develop long-term cooperation in all areas and integrate Afghanistan into the region. This is exactly what Uzbekistan has been doing for the past 20 years. “Time has confirmed the correctness of our position. We foresaw the collapse of the former Afghan regime due to the inability to control the territory, unwillingness to engage in dialogue with the opposition, lack of commitment to inclusive governance, and deep-rooted corruption. The current leadership has managed to stabilize the situation in the country and redirect resources to infrastructure development, including airports, railways, water and energy supply facilities. In addition, active measures are being taken to reduce opium production,” Mirziyoyev said. Today, Afghanistan, according to the head of Uzbekistan, is “a country of strategic opportunities.” “It is extremely important to integrate it into the global economy, in particular through the implementation of infrastructure projects. We are ready to work with the European Union and other international partners to promote a positive agenda and initiatives aimed at overcoming the crisis and ensuring the long-term development of Afghanistan. We are convinced that the stability and reconstruction of Afghanistan meet the common interests of the Central Asian countries and the European Union,” Mirziyoyev stressed.

However, Afghanistan is increasingly integrating into international trade. At the end of March, the first railway delivery of Afghan goods to Europe on the Khaf–Herat route took place. 200 tons of dried fruits and nuts worth $1.2 million were shipped to Europe. This event demonstrates the growing economic cooperation between Afghanistan and the EU and opens up new prospects for Afghan exports.

In September 2021, the European Union decided to have a limited presence in Kabul for humanitarian missions. However, the EU has conditioned full-fledged assistance to the development of Afghanistan on respect for human rights, including the rights of women and girls, as well as recognition of the legitimacy of the current government. Currently, Brussels is taking a wait-and-see attitude, observing the development of the situation in Afghanistan.

At the same time, after losing influence in Africa and, consequently, deposits of uranium, lithium and other rare earths, the EU is looking for new opportunities. And Afghanistan may become one of them. Thus, the interests of China, Russia, the United States and the EU will converge in Afghanistan.

According to experts, Afghanistan is rich in minerals, the value of which is estimated at trillions of dollars, including rare earth metals, iron, copper, lithium, etc. It is no coincidence that Afghanistan began to be called “lithium Saudi Arabia”, following the example of the myriad oil reserves in Saudi Arabia. Soviet geologists conducted serious studies of the Afghan subsoil in the 60-70s of the last century. These data were later supplemented by aerial photography and field work by the US Geological Survey in 2004-2011. The Americans have identified 24 promising mining areas. Chinese and Indian companies managed to obtain the rights to develop a number of deposits, but since the end of the 2010s, projects have been frozen due to contractual disputes and safety concerns. The USA and Russia claim to develop a number of deposits. Back in his first term in September 2017, President Donald Trump negotiated with his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani on the extraction of rare earth metals by American companies in Afghanistan. But the issue rested on the lack of infrastructure, roads and security.

Today, the situation in Afghanistan is undergoing changes. By consolidating control over the country and establishing contacts with Moscow, the Taliban fulfilled a number of obligations, which prompted the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Russian Federation to appeal to the Supreme Court with a request to lift the ban on the activities of the Taliban movement in Russia (the organization is recognized as terrorist and banned in the Russian Federation). The hearing on this administrative case is scheduled for April 17. It should be recalled that representatives of the Taliban form the basis of the current Afghan government. This will enable the Russian Federation to start implementing projects in Afghanistan, and, according to observers, jointly with the United States. The arguments are about the existing experience of cooperation to one degree or another and the warming of relations between the two countries. The best option would be to develop a uranium deposit in Helmand province in southern Afghanistan. There will also be money for the implementation of the project – $ 7 billion. The Central Bank of Afghanistan has frozen its accounts in US banks. But in order to develop deposits, it is necessary to create a good logistical infrastructure. There are few good roads in Afghanistan, and even more so railways.

Afghanistan is one of the few countries in the world that did not have a single kilometer of railway on its territory until the 21st century. In 2010, Uzbek specialists built the Hairaton–Mazar-I-Sharif railway. The Asian Development Bank allocated the money for the implementation of this project – 129 million dollars. In February 2024, Uzbekistan began to modernize this highway.

In July 2023, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan signed a joint protocol on the construction of the Trans-Afghan Railway, which will connect the Uzbek railway network with Pakistani railways through Afghan territory. Russia is joining them. It is assumed that the route will pass through Termez, Mazar-I-Sharif and Logar to the Pakistani border checkpoint Kharlachi in the Kurram area. According to the Ministry of Railways of Pakistan, after connecting the railways of the three states, cargo and passenger transportation will not only facilitate regional, transit and bilateral trade between the participating countries, but also ensure their economic development and strengthen the ties of the region’s residents (see NG dated 02/22/24).

On readiness to participate in financing the construction of the Herat–Mazar-I–Sharif–Kunduz-Sherkhan-Bandar railway (on the border with Tajikistan. – “NG”) stated the World Bank. This road is interesting to Russia because it can be continued from Tajikistan through Kazakhstan and further to the Russian Federation, thus closing the railway network of Afghanistan.