Russian Dy PM calls for creation of rail route connecting to the Indian Ocean

Moscow, Aug 9: Russia needs to create a railway route to the Indian Ocean to reduce dependence on strategically sensitive maritime chokepoints like the Strait of Hormuz and Bosphorus Strait, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin has said. His comments came amid the conflict in West Asia, which has severely disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — a waterway through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s energy supplies pass in normal times. “A rail link to the Indian Ocean should also be explored. Risks related to the Bosphorus and the Strait of Hormuz might require alternative routes: through Turkmenistan, Iran, Afghanista…