Russia, Oman see vast potential for transit via North-South transport corridor

KAZAN, May 14. /TASS/. Russia and Oman possess significant potential to develop transit cargo traffic along the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) by creating an end-to-end logistical service between the two nations and other states, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said at the Russia-Oman Business Forum. "I am confident that Russia and Oman share extensive potential for developing and supporting transit traffic along the International North-South Transport Corridor by creating an end-to-end logistics service between the Russian Federation, the Sultanate of Oman, and other countries. The current international situation in the Middle East has shown how important this is and how high of a priority this route is," he said. Khusnullin also noted that the development of the North-South, West-East, and Europe-Western China international corridors, along with access roads, remains among the key priorities. Russia is ramping up efforts with neighboring countries to synchronize road development plans to create end-to-end transport corridors. The Deputy Prime Minister sees particular potential in mutual tourism: the number of Omani tourists in Russia doubled by the end of 2025, while demand from Russian citizens to visit Omani resorts is also growing. There are also prospects for cooperation in industry, energy, trade, agriculture, and road construction, he added. An intergovernmental agreement on the creation of the multimodal transport corridor North-South spanning 7,200 km was signed by Russia, India and Iran in 2000. Later, the number of participants rose to 14. The project is aimed at attracting transit of cargo flows from India, Iran and the Persian Gulf countries through Russian territory to Europe. Currently the project unites several various transport systems of separate countries.