Transport in Turkmenistan includes such as roadways, railways, airways, seaways, waterways, oil, gas and water pipelines.
Transport in Afghanistan is limited and in the developing stage. Much of the nation's road network was built during the 1960s but left to ruin during the 1980s and 90s wars. New national highways, roads, and bridges have been rebuilt in the last decade to help increase travel as well as trade with neighboring countries. In 2008, there were about 731,607 vehicles registered inside the country.
Ashgabat, formerly named Poltoratsk between 1919 and 1927, is the capital and the largest city of Turkmenistan. It is situated between the Karakum Desert and the Kopet Dag mountain range in Central Asia.
Turkmenistan, also known as Turkmenia, is a sovereign country in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north and east, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ashgabat is the capital and largest city of the country. The population of the country is 6 million, the lowest of the Central Asian republics. Turkmenistan is one of the most sparsely populated nations in Asia. Citizens of Turkmenistan are known as Turkmenistanis.
The Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic, also commonly known as Turkmenistan or Turkmenia, was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union located in Central Asia existed as a republic from 1925 to 1991. Initially, on 7 August 1921, it was established as the Turkmen Oblast of the Turkestan ASSR before being made, on 13 May 1925, a separate republic of the USSR as the Turkmen SSR.
The Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India Pipeline (TAPI), also known as Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline, is a natural gas pipeline being developed by the Galkynysh – TAPI Pipeline Company Limited with participation of the Asian Development Bank. The pipeline will transport natural gas from the Galkynysh Gas Field in Turkmenistan through Afghanistan into Pakistan and then to India. Construction on the project started in Turkmenistan on 13 December 2015, work on the Afghan section began in February 2018, and work on the Pakistani section was planned to commence in December 2018. The abbreviation TAPI comes from the first letters of those countries. Proponents of the project see it as a modern continuation of the Silk Road.
Faryab is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan, which is located in the north of the country bordering neighboring Turkmenistan. It has a population of about 948,000, which is multi-ethnic and mostly a tribal society. The province encompasses 15 districts and over 1,000 villages. The capital of Faryab province is Maymana. It also borders Jowzjan Province, Sar-e Pol Province, Ghor Province and Badghis Province.
Turkmenistan's human rights record has been heavily criticized by various countries and scholars worldwide. Standards in education and health declined markedly during the rule of President Saparmurat Niyazov.
Ashgabat International Airport, formerly known as Saparmyrat Türkmenbaşy International Airport, is one of five international airports in Turkmenistan. It is located approximately 10 km (6 mi) northwest of the capital Ashgabat (Ashkhabad). The old airport, with its air traffic control tower and a 3,700-metre-long (12,000 ft) precision approach runway (12L-30R), opened in 1994 and was named after the country's first president, Saparmyrat Niyazov. The new airport opened in 2016 after being completely redesigned and rebuilt.
Torghundi, also spelled Turghundi or Towrgondi, is a border town in northern Herat province of Afghanistan. It is the second border crossing between Afghanistan and neighboring Turkmenistan. The town of Serhetabat in Turkmenistan is located just a short drive from the border crossing. Torghundi is about 100 km from the city of Herat.
Afghanistan has three railroad lines in the north of the country. The first is between Mazar-i-Sharif and the border town of Hairatan in Balkh province, which then connects with Uzbek Railways of Uzbekistan. The second links Torghundi in Herat province with Turkmen Railways of Turkmenistan. The third is between Aqina in Faryab province and neighboring Turkmenistan. The country currently lacks a passenger rail service, but a new rail link from Herat to Khaf in Iran for both cargo and passengers is under construction and estimated for completion in 2018. Passenger service is also proposed in Hairatan - Mazar-i-Sharif section and Mazar-i-Sharif - Aquina section.
Kerki is a town in eastern Turkmenistan. It is located in Lebap Province. It was formerly known as Zamm and, between 1999 and 2017, as Atamyrat. It is situated on a plain on the left bank of the Amu Darya river.
Saparmurat Atayevich Niyazov (Turkmen: Saparmyrat Ataýewiç Nyýazow, Cyrillic: Сапармырат Атаевич Ныязов; 19 February 1940 – 21 December 2006; also known as Türkmenbaşy or Beýik Türkmenbaşy was a Turkmen politician who served as the leader of Turkmenistan from 1985 until his death in 2006. He was First Secretary of the Turkmen Communist Party from 1985 until 1991 and supported the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt. He continued to rule Turkmenistan for 15 years after independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Turkmenistan has 4,980 kilometres (3,090 mi) of railways. The railway operator is the state owned company Türkmendemirýollary. The company belongs to the Ministry of Railways of Turkmenistan.
Türkmendemirýollary Agency is a state-owned operator of railways in Turkmenistan. The company operates 4,980 km (3,090 mi) of railways and over 345 railway stations throughout the country. The company belongs to the Ministry of Industry and Construction Operation of Turkmenistan. It is headquartered in Ashgabat.
Aqina is a border checkpoint and border crossing in northern Faryab Province of Afghanistan. It is also a train station, serving as the second rail service between Afghanistan and neighboring Turkmenistan. Aqina is located in the northern part of Khani Chahar Bagh district, directly adjacent to the border with Turkmenistan. The nearest Afghan town from Aqina is Andkhoy.
Afghanistan–Turkmenistan relations refer to bilateral relations between Afghanistan and Turkmenistan.
The Afghanistan-Turkmenistan border is 804 km (500 mi) in length and runs from the tripoint with Iran to the tripoint with Uzbekistan.
The State Border Guard Service (SBS) also commonly known by its paramilitary force as the Turkmen Border Troops is a border guard agency of the Armed Forces of Turkmenistan. It is currently a public service department of the government of the country and is under the command of the Ministry for National Security of Turkmenistan.
Atamyrat Niyazov was a soldier in the Red Army during World War II from the Soviet Republic of Turkmenistan who was the father of the first post-Soviet President of Turkmenistan Saparmurat Niyazov. He was also a school teacher and a financial officer.
