Hairatan
Encyclopedia
Hairatan is a border town
in the north of Balkh province
, Afghanistan
, on the Amu Darya
river. The river forms the border with Uzbekistan
, and the two nations are connected by the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge
. The city of Termez
in Uzbekistan is close to Hairatan. The altitude of Hairatan is 300m.
's National Islamic Movement of Afghanistan. After Momen's death by an RPG missile attack on 5 January 1994, the 70th Division split and Dostam loyalist Colonel General Helaluddin took command.
near the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan's second largest commercial center. The project, part of the transport strategy and action plan of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program
, is contractually scheduled for completion by June 2011.
On May 25, 2010, U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry
, the president of the Asian Development Bank
(ADB), the Afghan Minister of Finance, Minister of Mines, Minister of Transportation and Civil Aviation, and fellow Ambassadors from Japan, Finland, and Uzbekistan attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony inaugurating the Hairatan Rail Line. The United States and Japan are the two largest shareholders in ADB. The grant of the ADB covers 97% of the total project cost of $170 million, with the Afghan Government contributing $5 million. This rail link is the first phase of a larger rail network planned for the country, including further links to Herat
in the west and to Shir Khan Bandar
in the northeast. At Herat the line will connect to Iran
and at Shirkhan Bandar with Tajikistan
. These future lines will create a rail corridor through north Afghanistan and enable freight coming from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan to reach Persian Gulf
ports on rail, avoiding the need to pass through Turkmenistan
.
Border town
A border town is a town or city close to the boundary between two countries, states or regions. Usually the term implies that it is one of the things the town is most famous for. Border towns can have highly cosmopolitan communities, a feature they share with port cities...
in the north of Balkh province
Balkh Province
Balkh is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is in the north of the country and its name derives from the ancient city of Balkh, near the modern town...
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, on the Amu Darya
Amu Darya
The Amu Darya , also called Oxus and Amu River, is a major river in Central Asia. It is formed by the junction of the Vakhsh and Panj rivers...
river. The river forms the border with Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south....
, and the two nations are connected by the Afghanistan–Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge
Afghanistan–Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge
The Afghanistan–Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge is a road and rail bridge across the river Amu Darya in the northern Balkh province of Afghanistan, which connects the town of Hairatan with Termez in Uzbekistan...
. The city of Termez
Termez
Termez is a city in southern Uzbekistan near the border with Afghanistan.Some link the name of the city to thermos, "hot" in Greek, tracing its name back to Alexander the Great. Others suggest that it came from Sanskrit taramato, meaning "on the river bank". It is the hottest point of Uzbekistan...
in Uzbekistan is close to Hairatan. The altitude of Hairatan is 300m.
History
In the early 1990s, Hairatan was the location of the 70th Division of General Abdul Momen, who was loosely aligned with Abdul Rashid DostumAbdul Rashid Dostum
Abdul Rashid Dostum is a former pro-Soviet fighter during the Soviet war in Afghanistan and is considered by many to be the leader of Afghanistan's Uzbek community and the party Junbish-e Milli-yi Islami-yi Afghanistan...
's National Islamic Movement of Afghanistan. After Momen's death by an RPG missile attack on 5 January 1994, the 70th Division split and Dostam loyalist Colonel General Helaluddin took command.
Railway
A freight terminal in Hairatan is the terminus of one of two rail lines in Afghanistan - a 10 km link to Termez. On January 22, 2010, the construction was started of a 75 km rail link from Hairatan to a terminal at Gur-e MarGur-e Mar
Gur-e Mar is a village in Balkh Province in northern Afghanistan.On January 22, 2010, the construction was started of a 75 km rail link from Hairatan near the border with Uzbekistan to a terminal at Gur-e Mar. The project is contractually scheduled for completion by June 2011. -External links:*...
near the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan's second largest commercial center. The project, part of the transport strategy and action plan of the Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program
Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program
The Central Asia Regional Economic Cooperation Program is an Asian Development Bank supported initiative which was established in 1997 to encourage economic cooperation among countries in the Central Asian region...
, is contractually scheduled for completion by June 2011.
On May 25, 2010, U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry
Karl Eikenberry
Karl Winfrid Eikenberry is a retired United States Army Lieutenant General and former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan.-Education:Eikenberry graduated from Goldsboro High School in Goldsboro, North Carolina in 1969 and then attended West Point, where he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant upon...
, the president of the Asian Development Bank
Asian Development Bank
The Asian Development Bank is a regional development bank established on 22 August 1966 to facilitate economic development of countries in Asia...
(ADB), the Afghan Minister of Finance, Minister of Mines, Minister of Transportation and Civil Aviation, and fellow Ambassadors from Japan, Finland, and Uzbekistan attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony inaugurating the Hairatan Rail Line. The United States and Japan are the two largest shareholders in ADB. The grant of the ADB covers 97% of the total project cost of $170 million, with the Afghan Government contributing $5 million. This rail link is the first phase of a larger rail network planned for the country, including further links to Herat
Herat
Herāt is the capital of Herat province in Afghanistan. It is the third largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of about 397,456 as of 2006. It is situated in the valley of the Hari River, which flows from the mountains of central Afghanistan to the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan...
in the west and to Shir Khan Bandar
Shir Khan Bandar
Shir Khan Bandar is a port on the Panj River in Afghanistan on the border with Tajikistan. Its old name was Qezel Qal‘eh. It was renamed after Shir Khan Nashir, Khan of the Kharoti tribe, governor of Kunduz and the rest of northern Afghanistan in the 1930s.- Transport :It is currently served via a...
in the northeast. At Herat the line will connect to Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
and at Shirkhan Bandar with Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
. These future lines will create a rail corridor through north Afghanistan and enable freight coming from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan to reach Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
ports on rail, avoiding the need to pass through Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...
.
See also
- Islam QalaIslam QalaIslam Qala , also transliterated Eslam Qaleh, Eslam Qala or Islam Kala, also known as Kafar Qaleh, is a border town in the western Herat province of Afghanistan, on the border with Iran...
- TowraghondiTowraghondiTowraghondi is a border town in Afghanistan. It is immediately opposite Serhetabat in Turkmenistan, with which it is connected by a road and a 1520 mm gauge railway which was restored to use in 2007.- See also :*Islam Qala*Hairatan...
- Shir Khan BandarShir Khan BandarShir Khan Bandar is a port on the Panj River in Afghanistan on the border with Tajikistan. Its old name was Qezel Qal‘eh. It was renamed after Shir Khan Nashir, Khan of the Kharoti tribe, governor of Kunduz and the rest of northern Afghanistan in the 1930s.- Transport :It is currently served via a...
- Demogan
- Spin BoldakSpin BoldakSpin Boldak or Spin Buldak is a border town in the southern Kandahar province of Afghanistan, right next to the Durand Line border with Pakistan. It is linked by a highway with the city of Kandahar to the north, and with Chaman and Quetta in Pakistan to the south. Spin Boldak has the second major...
- TorkhamTorkhamTorkham is a border crossing town in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan and the Khyber Agency of Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas, right on the Durand Line border....