ESCAP /AHWG/2019/3 *

Distr.: General 11 July 2019

Chinese, English and Russian only

Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Working Group on the Asian Highway 8th meeting Bangkok, 18 and 19 September 2019 Item 6 of the provisional agenda ** Consideration of proposals for amending the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network

Proposals for amending the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network Note by the secretariat

Summary

The present document contains proposals by the parties to the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network to amend the Agreement. The Governments of China, Georgia and the Russian Federation have proposed amendments to annex I to the Agreement and the Government of Bangladesh has proposed an amendment to annex II to the Agreement. The Working Group on the Asian Highway may wish to consider adopting the proposals.

I. Introduction

1. Pursuant to article 8, paragraph 2, article 9, paragraph 2, and article 10, paragraph 2, of the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network, amendments may be proposed by any party. As stipulated in article 7, paragraph 1, of the Agreement, the Working Group on the Asian Highway is the competent body to consider any amendments proposed. In this connection and in line with standing practice, the secretariat informed member States of the proposed date of the Working Group meeting and invited all parties to submit to the secretariat proposals for amending the Agreement, by means of a note verbale dated 15 March 2019.

2. The secretariat received proposals for amending annexes I and II to the Agreement, which are subject to articles 9 and 10 of the Agreement, respectively. Therefore, in keeping with its obligations under article 9, paragraph 3, and article 10, paragraph 3, of the Agreement, the secretariat circulated the proposals to be considered at the 8th meeting of the Working Group 45 days before the opening of the meeting. Against this background, the

______* Reissued for technical reasons on 23 August 2019. ** ESCAP/AHWG/2019/L.1.

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Working Group will be invited to consider the proposals as contained in the annex to the present document.

3. The amendment proposals received from the Governments of Bangladesh, Georgia and the Russian Federation have been circulated by the secretariat by means of a note verbale dated 2 August 2019, in line with article 9, paragraph 3, of the Agreement. The amendment proposals by the Government of China were received by the secretariat on 14 August 2019 and circulated by means of a note verbale dated 19 August 2019.

4. During the Working Group’s deliberations, the secretariat may provide clarifications on technical matters and on points of procedure related to the working of the Agreement as and when requested by members of the Working Group. In line with the relevant articles of the Agreement, after the meeting of the Working Group, the secretariat will communicate all adopted amendments to the Secretary-General in his capacity as depositary, for circulation to all parties and subsequent entry into force.

II. Proposed amendment to annex I to the Agreement

Proposals by China, Georgia and the Russian Federation

5. In conformity with article 9, paragraph 2, of the Agreement, the Governments of China, Georgia and the Russian Federation proposed amendments to annex I to the Agreement.

6. Article 9 stipulates that amendments may be proposed by any party after consultation and obtaining consensus with directly concerned neighbouring States except for an amendment relating to domestic alignment that does not change an international border crossing.

7. The proposed amendments from China and Georgia concern domestic alignments that do not affect international border crossings. As such, no obligations arise for these proponents under article 9, paragraph 2, or for the secretariat under article 9, paragraph 8, of the Agreement.

8. The proposed amendment by the Government of the Russian Federation concerns the insertion of a new route in annex I, to be numbered “AH9”, commencing in the Russian Federation and traversing the territories of (in direction of route) Kazakhstan and China. In accordance with article 9, paragraphs 2 and 7, the proposed amendment warrants the consensus of the parties defined as directly concerned. For the purposes of article 9, paragraph 5, the list of the parties directly concerned by this amendment shall be communicated by the secretariat to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, in keeping with article 9, paragraph 8.

9. The texts of the amendments as proposed are contained in the annex to the present document. The Working Group may wish to consider the amendments to annex I to the Agreement as proposed by the Governments of China, Georgia and the Russian Federation and decide on their adoption in line with the procedures stipulated in article 9, paragraph 4, of the Agreement.

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III. Proposed amendment to annex II to the Agreement

Proposal by Bangladesh

10. In conformity with article 10, paragraph 2, of the Agreement, the Government of Bangladesh proposed an amendment to annex II to the Agreement. The text of the amendment as proposed is contained in the annex to the present document.

11. The Working Group may wish to consider the amendment to annex II to the Agreement as proposed by the Government of Bangladesh and decide on its adoption in line with the procedure stipulated in article 10, paragraph 4, of the Agreement.

IV. Issues for consideration by the Working Group on the Asian Highway

12. The Working Group on the Asian Highway may wish to consider the text of the proposed amendments as contained in the annex to the present document, in accordance with the procedures stipulated in articles 9 and 10 of the Agreement. The Working Group may wish to note that, as per article 9, paragraph 4, and article 10, paragraph 4, of the Agreement, the amendment as adopted shall be communicated by the secretariat to the Secretary-General, who shall circulate it to all parties.

13. The Working Group may further wish to recall that, as per article 9, paragraphs 5 and 6, and article 10, paragraphs 5 and 6, amendments to annexes I and II to the Agreement as adopted by the Working Group shall be deemed accepted if during a period of six months from the date of the notification, none of the parties directly concerned, or less than one third of the parties, respectively, notify the Secretary-General of their objection to the amendment and that the amendment will enter into force for all parties three months after the expiry of the above-mentioned period of six months.

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Annex

Amendments to annex I to the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network

1. Amendment proposal from the Government of China

The Government of China proposes to make the following amendments to the routes numbered as AH1, AH3, AH5, AH6, AH31, AH32, AH33, AH34 and AH42 in the list of Asian Highway routes in annex I to the Agreement: to change the status of these sections that are within China’s territory from potential to actual Asian Highway routes, and remove the underlining in annex I accordingly.

* The segments where underlining has been removed are marked in bold font

AH1 Tokyo – Fukuoka – ferry – Pusan – Kyongju – Taegu – Taejon – Seoul – Munsan – Gaesung – Pyongyang – Sinuiju – Dandong – Shenyang – Beijing – Shijiazhuang – Zhengzhou – Xinyang – Wuhan – Changsha – Xiangtan – Guangzhou (– Shenzhen) – Nanning – Youyiguan – Huu Nghi – Dong Dang – Ha Noi – Vinh – Dong Ha – Hue – Da Nang – Hoi An – Nha Trang – Bien Hoa (– Vung Tau) – Ho Chi Minh City – Moc Bai – Bavet – Phnom Penh – Poipet – Aranyaprathet – Kabin Buri – Hin Kong – Bang Pa- in (– Bangkok) – Nakhon Sawan – Tak – Mae Sot – Myawadi – Payagyi (– Yangon) – Meiktila – Mandalay – Tamu – Moreh – Imphal – Kohima – Dimapur – Nagaon – Jorabat (– Guwahati) – Shillong – Dawki – Tamabil – Sylhet – Katchpur – Dhaka – Jessore – Benapol – Bongaon – Kolkata – Barhi – Kanpur – Agra – New Delhi – Attari – Wahgah – Lahore – Rawalpindi (– Islamabad) – Hassanabdal – Peshawar – Torkham – Kabul – Kandahar – Dilaram – Herat – Islam Qala – Dogharun – Mashhad – Sabzevar – Damghan – Semnan – Tehran – Qazvin – Tabriz – Eyvoghli – Bazargan – Gurbulak – Dogubayazit – Askale – Refahiye – Sivas – Ankara – Gerede – Istanbul – Kapikule – Border of Bulgaria

AH3 Ulan-Ude – Kyahta – Altanbulag – Darkhan – Ulaanbaatar – Nalayh – Choir – Saynshand – Zamin-Uud –Erenhot – Beijing – Tanggu

Shanghai – Hangzhou – Nanchang – Xiangtan – Guiyang – Kunming – Jinghong (– Daluo – Mongla – Kyaing Tong) – Mohan – Boten – Nateuy – Houayxay – Chiang Khong – Chiang Rai Shanghai – Nanjing – Xinyang – Xi’an – Lanzhou – Tulfan - Urumqi – Kuitun – AH5 Jinghe – Horgos – Almaty – Kaskelen – Kordai – Georgievka – Bishkek – Kara Balta – Chaldovar – Merke – Shymkent – Zhibek Zholy – Chernyavka – Tashkent – Syrdaria – Samarkand – Navoi – Bukhara – Alat – Farap – Turkmenabat – Mary – Tejen – Ashgabat – Serdar – Turkemenbashi – ferry – Baku – Alat – Gazi Mammed – Ganja – Kazakh – Red Bridge – Tbilisi – Mtskheta – Khashuri – Senaki – Poti (– ferry to Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine) – Batumi (– ferry to Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine) – Sarpi – Sarp – Trabzon – Samsun – Merzifon – Gerede –Istanbul – Kapikule – Border of Bulgaria AH6 Pusan – Kyongju – Kangnung – Kansong – Kosong – Wonsan (– Pyongyang ) – Chongjin – Sonbong – Khasan – Hasan – Razdolnoe (– Vladivostok – Nahodka) – Ussuriysk – Pogranichny – Suifenhe – Harbin – Qiqihar – Manzhouli – Zabaykalsk – Chita – Ulan- Ude – Irkutsk – Krasnoyarsk – Novosibirsk – Omsk – Isilkul – Karakuga – Petropavlovsk – Chistoe – Petuhovo – Chelyabinsk – Ufa – Samara – Moscow – Krasnoe – Border of Belarus

AH31 Belogorsk – Blagoveshchensk – Heihe – Harbin – Changchun – Shenyang – Dalian

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AH32 Sonbong – Wonjong – Quanhe – Hunchun – Changchun – Arshan – Numrug – Sumber – Choybalsan – Ondorhaan – Nalayh – Ulaanbaatar – Uliastay – Hovd

AH33 Harbin – Tongjiang

AH34 Lianyungang – Zhengzhou – Xi’an

AH42 Lanzhou – Xining – Golmud – Lhasa – Zhangmu – Kodari – Kathmandu – Narayanghat – Pathlaiya – Birgunj – Raxaul – Piprakothi – Muzaffarpur – Barauni – Barhi

2. Amendment proposal from the Government of Georgia

The Government of Georgia proposes that the Zugdidi bypass road as well as the access road to the deep-sea port of Anaklia be incorporated as a potential Asian Highway route. The Government of Georgia proposes that this road be reflected as part of Asian Highway Route No. 5, as follows:

* New text is marked in bold font.

AH5 Shanghai – Nanjing – Xinyang – Xi’an – Lanzhou – Tulfan -Urumqi – Kuitun – Jinghe – Horgos – Almaty – Kaskelen – Kordai – Georgievka – Bishkek – Kara Balta – Chaldovar – Merke – Shymkent – Zhibek Zholy – Chernyavka – Tashkent – Syrdaria – Samarkand – Navoi – Bukhara – Alat – Farap – Turkmenabat – Mary – Tejen – Ashgabat – Serdar – Turkemenbashi – ferry – Baku – Alat – Hajigabul – Ganja – Gazakh – Red Bridge – Tbilisi – Mtskheta – Khashuri – (Samtredia – Zugdidi bypass road – Port of Anaklia (– ferry to Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine)) – Senaki – Poti (– ferry to Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine) – Batumi (– ferry to Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine) – Sarpi – Sarp – Trabzon – Samsun – Merzifon – Gerede –Istanbul – Kapikule – Border of Bulgaria

Note : As per annex I to the Agreement, routes in parentheses identify branches from the place indicated immediately before the parentheses and underlined sections indicate potential Asian Highway routes.

3. Amendment proposal from the Government of the Russian Federation

The Government of the Russian Federation proposes to amend annex I to the Agreement by adding the international transport route “Europe-West China” (St. Petersburg – Moscow – Ulyanovsk – Togliatti bypass – Samara – Orenburg – Sagarchin – Zhaisan – Aktobe – Kyzylorda - Shymkent – Taraz – Almaty – Khorgas – Horgos – Urumqi – Lianyungang) to the list of the Asian Highway routes, as follows:

* New text is marked in bold font.

AH9 St. Petersburg – Moscow – Ulyanovsk – Togliatti bypass – Samara – Orenburg – Sagarchin – Zhaisan – Aktobe – Kyzylorda - Shymkent – Taraz – Almaty – Khorgas – Horgos – Urumqi – Lianyungang

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Amendment to annex II to the Intergovernmental Agreement on the Asian Highway Network

Amendment proposal from the Government of Bangladesh

The Government of Bangladesh proposes that, at the end of annex II (Asian Highway Classification and Design Standards), the following new paragraph be inserted as number 10:

* New text is marked in bold font

10. Co-habitation of optical fibre for strengthening information and communications technology connectivity

There is an opportunity to leverage synergies between the concomitant deployment of optical-fibre cables during the construction and maintenance of the Asian Highway network. Such co-deployment would create additional cross-country Internet transmission routes which would contribute to the reduction of the digital divide in the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific region. In this regard, parties shall endeavour to utilize the right of way of the Asian Highway network for the co-deployment of optical-fibre cables across and within countries.

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