ISLAMABAD: The Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal, has stressed the need for creating an environment of peace and trust in order to fructify East East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC) for South and Central Asia, like CPEC.

“In the presence of coercion, threats, and reneging from the international treaties by India, the EWEC dream would remain unrealised,” the minister said.

He was expressing his views on a research study,” Examining Feasibility of East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC) for South and Central Asia.” Research teams from Islamabad Policy Research Institute IPRI and RAND Corporation, USA, have prepared the study.

Mr Ahsan Iqbal said Pakistan is a responsible and peace-loving state and has displayed its intent to cooperate on the infrastructure and economic connectivity front, but India has to respond positively.

He appreciated the research team and expressed hope for the success of EWEC concept through intra-regional consensus and confidence-building measures.

He stated that the study was a veritable blueprint for regional connectivity and prosperity, but the sustainable fructification of the concept required a climate of trust and peace.

The minister lauded the research team’s phased and pragmatic approach for the implementation of the EWEC concept, especially the establishment of a “Research Advocacy Group” of experts to promote awareness and build trust about the concept.

It is a unique study that focuses on infrastructural, trade, digital, and economic connectivity between South Asia and Central Asia, linking the region through a network of gas pipelines, road/rail corridors, and digital communication infrastructure.

The EWEC is perceived as an economic corridor that would complement rather than compete with other economic corridors like CPEC and INSTC in the region.

The Ambassador of Kazakhstan, Mr Qystapa Yerzan, also spoke on the occasion, highlighting the value of EWEC as a regional connectivity vehicle, which promised regional connectivity and affluence.

He said the EWEC concept promised to link South Asia not only with Central Asia but the Middle East and European markets, thereby ushering in an era of prosperity and sustainable economic development for the entire region.

Acting President IPRI Dr Raashid Wali Janjua explained the concept of the EWEC, emphasising the need to overcome geopolitical differences and security problems to make this corridor a win-win proposition for the entire South Asian and Central Asian region.

RAND Corporation’s project director, Dr Rafiq Dossani, dwelt on the research objectives, process, and the recommendations.

The recommendations included a suggestion for a regional organisation, EWECA, that could act as a focal point for implementation of the infrastructural and economic corridor concept by building trust through a research advocacy group and providing facilities of dispute resolution, access to capital, and dealing with pressures of external powers.

Ambassadors of Turkmenistan also attended the meeting.

Published in Dawn, May 30th, 2025