OREANDA-NEWS. March 12, 2009. Effective development of trade and economic ties among ECO member nations is not possible without transport infrastructure and new transit routes, said Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Karim Massimov today at the 10th ECO summit of Heads of State and Heads of Governments, reported the Official website http://en.government.kz.

Implementation of the Transit Transport Framework Agreement (TTFA) and implementation of the project to launch regular container and passenger trains along the route of Almaty-Istanbul are of vital importance to future development of the ECO and its member nations. “At the same time, Kazakhstan suggests launching an alternative regular container train along the route of Bandar Abbas – Almaty. We intend to take active efforts to revive the Great Silk Road to bring it up to a new level”, said the Prime Minister.

Works have started to reconstruct the West Europe – West China transit corridor. “Involvement of ECO nations in this project is just welcomed”, K. Massimov believes.

Kazakhstan agrees that the ECO’s region possesses a huge – largely untapped – potential for interaction in the realm of energy. Unique geographic location of the ECO member-states calls for further intensification of development of cooperation in energy and transportation.

“We are speaking in favor of ECO Prospects – 2015 implementation which outlines issues of joint work of the electric power system, sales and exchange of electric power within the ECO”, noted the Prime Minister.

ECO is constantly working to activate the private sector. Kazakhstan supports such efforts. In this context, hosting business forums by member states to facilitate ties among private sectors of member nations is of special importance, said K. Massimov.
 
The global financial crisis has spread outside the boundaries of the financial system and is administering negative influence on socio-economic development of the countries. But still none of the influential international organizations have yet been able to propose any concrete mechanisms or solutions for overcoming the crisis. Therefore the economic potential of the ECO is of great importance, stressed the Prime Minister.

Dwelling on President Nazarbayev’s proposal to introduce a single supranational currency, K. Massimov noted that “this measure could be a good basis for getting out of the crisis”.

”The Organization sets the task of overcoming the crisis. And it should employ its vast economic potential – is vast consumer market”, K. Massimov said.

At the 10th ECO summit in Tehran Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister suggested launching an ECO representation office in Almaty to promote science and new technology. Besides, he proposed to declare the year of 2010 a Year of New Technology. This will ensure greater activeness of the ECO in Central Asia and will intensify relations in spheres of new technologies, innovation-driven industrial development, and economic research.