Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline
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The Trans-Afghanistan Pipeline (TAP) is a proposed natural gas pipeline, being developed by the Asian Development Bank. The pipeline will transport natural gas, from the Caspian Sea, through Afghanistan, to Pakistan and the Indian Ocean. The Afghani government is expected to receive 8% of the project's revenue. TAP will be constructed alongside the highway running from Herat to Kandahar. The cost of this international infrastructure is estimated at US$3 billion. Proponents of the project see it as a modern continuation of the "Silk Road".
The deal on the pipeline was signed on december 27 2002 by the leaders of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Signing the agreement was made possible by the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan a year prior, which overthrew the Taliban controlling most of Afghanistan. Building the pipline was cited by some critics of the Bush administration as a motivation for the invasion.
See also
External links
- BBC-story on the deal (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2608713.stm)nl:Trans-Afghanistan-pijpleiding