Russian President Approves Working Group for Development of North-South International Transport Corridor

Russian President Vladimir Putin has issued a directive to establish a working group focused on the development of the North-South International Transport Corridor (ITC). The corresponding document has been published on the official legal information portal. The group comprises five members: Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Savelyev, appointed as its head; Russian Transport Minister Roman Starovoit; Presidential Adviser Igor Levitin; CEO of Russian Railways Oleg Belozerov; and Deputy Minister of Transport Dmitry Zverev, who will serve as the group’s secretary. On the same day, November 25, Vladimir Putin also appointed Vitaly Savelyev as the President’s Special Representative for the Development of the North-South ITC, according to a statement from the Kremlin's press service. The North-South ITC is a multimodal route stretching 7,200 kilometers from Saint Petersburg to the Indian port of Mumbai, utilizing rail, maritime, and river transport. The corridor consists of three main routes: The Eastern route passes through Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan via road and rail. The Western route runs through Azerbaijan via road and rail. The Trans-Caspian route crosses the Caspian Sea, connecting through the Volga River to Iranian and Turkmen ports. By 2030, the freight volume along the North-South ITC is projected to exceed 40 million tons.