Indian Foreign Minister in Turkmenistan to Discuss TAPI Project

India’s Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj is in Turkmenistan where she will co-chair a meeting to discuss key bilateral and regional issues, including the TAPI gas pipeline project, reported Press Trust of India.

Swaraj will co-chair the fifth India-Turkmenistan Inter- Governmental Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation with her Turkmen counterpart Rashid Meredov on Wednesday.

Key bilateral and regional issues, including trade and the ambitious Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline project, are expected to be discussed during the joint commission meeting, Press Trust added.

At the 20th steering committee meeting of TAPI project held in February, India had pressed Turkmenistan to relax its domestic law to help get an international firm for building the project.

Last year, gas companies of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India established a company that will build, own and operate the planned 1,800-kilometer TAPI natural gas pipeline. 

The pipeline will export up to 33 billion cubic meters of natural gas a year from Turkmenistan to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India over 30 years.