TIR stands for “Transports Internationaux Routiers" or "International Road Transports". The 1975 convention replaced the TIR Convention of 1959, which itself replaced the 1949 TIR Agreement between a number of European countries.
“The KTAI corridor offers an alternative, short route between Iran’s southern ports and e Central Asian countries,” Mostafa Ayati was also quoted as saying by IRNA on Sunday.
Starting at Shahid Rajaee Port, two TIR trucks crossed Dogharoun border checkpoint into Afghanistan, then continued their journey to Tajikistan and then to their final destination Kyrgyzstan.
With the completion of custom procedure at Dogharoun Customs Department, the KTAI corridor is now officially open for TIR operations.
The new trade route opens up the region to trade and development, and will enable freight forwarders and transport operators to benefit from significant cost and time savings from goods transportation.
According to World Bank reports, the total population of the four countries along the corridor stands at more than 128 million people and their combined total GDP equals close to half a trillion dollars.
The launch of the KTAI corridor is designed to tap into these growing markets, the International Road Transport Union reported.
Given the route’s starting point of Shahid Rajaee Port, traders and transport operators can also take advantage of the intermodal and digital functions of TIR along the corridor, optimizing trade flows and driving growth in the region.
Shahid Rajaee: Iran's Biggest Commercial Port
According to the Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran's latest report, a total of 13.24 million tons of commodities were loaded and unloaded in Hormozgan Province’s Shahid Rajaee Port during the first three months of the current Iranian year (March 20-June 20), registering a 27.11% fall compared with the similar period of last year.
This made Shahid Rajaee the country’s busiest port during the period, as attested by previous reports. Non-oil goods accounted for 6.55 million tons and oil products for more than 6.68 million tons of the total, showing a 45.19% decline and a 7.76% rise respectively year-on-year.
Located 23 kilometers west of the port city of Bandar Abbas, the capital of Hormozgan Province, Shahid Rajaee is Iran’s biggest container port.
Over half of Iran’s commercial trading is carried out at Shahid Rajaee that also accounts for over 85% of all container throughput in the country.
According to Mohammad Reza Rezaei-Kouchi, the head of Majlis Development Commission, Shahid Rajaee Port has a 6% share in the region’s total container throughput per annum, ILNA reported.