Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan have signed a memorandum on the construction of an underwater fiber-optic communication line between Bekdash (Turkmenistan) and Temirbaba (Kazakhstan). The document, concluded between the state operator TurkmenTelecom and the Kazakh company TNS-Plus, was signed on November 25 in Astana in the presence of Turkmenistan’s President Serdar Berdimuhamedov during his state visit to Kazakhstan, Turkmenportal.com reports.
The new route will significantly expand Turkmenistan’s capabilities as a key transit hub for digital traffic between Asia and Europe, providing backup communication channels and improving the reliability of the country’s national telecommunications infrastructure. According to Turkmen officials, the project will increase the bandwidth of international communication lines several times over.
A joint working group has been established under the supervision of Turkmenistan’s Ministry of Communications and the relevant Kazakh agency to implement the project. Technical specifications and design documentation will be completed in the coming months, with major construction expected to be finished within a year.
Earlier in Astana, Turkmenistan’s Minister of Communications Khadzhamyrat Khudaigulyyev held talks with Kazakhstan’s Deputy Prime Minister Zhaslan Madiev, during which both sides reaffirmed the project’s priority. However, the initiative and strategic motivation have been clearly driven by Turkmenistan as part of its effort to diversify the country’s digital routes.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
November 26, 2025