July 06, 2007	Friday	Jamadi-us-Sani 20, 1428

ASHGABAT, July 5: Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov told Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on Thursday that Turkmenistan was still interested in a planned gas pipeline across Afghanistan to Pakistan and India.

“For a long time we have talked about an Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline. We are taking this project into account and are ready to study all proposals for its implementation. It has not been superseded by other projects,” Berdymukhamedov said.Karzai’s visit comes at a time of renewed competition for influence over Turkmenistan’s vast gas reserves, prompted by the death last December of the previous Turkmen president Saparmurat Niyazov.

In May Berdymukhamedov agreed to a Russian-backed plan for a pipeline around the Caspian Sea to Russia, but he has also held talks with US oil companies.

Another pet project of Washington is to build a gas pipeline across the Caspian from Turkmenistan to Western markets, but this has yet to be agreed.

On Thursday Berdymukhamedov said his country would in principal be ready to ship 30 billion cubic metres of gas annually through the proposed trans-Afghan pipeline.—AFP