XL ANNIVERSARY MEETING OF THE CONFERENCE OF GENERAL DIRECTORS

From April 20 to 24, 2026, the XL anniversary meeting of the Conference of General Directors (Responsible Representatives) of the SCO Railways (CGM) was held in the capital of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Astana.
During the opening of the plenary meeting on April 23, marking the XL anniversary meeting of the CGM and the 70th anniversary of the creation of the SCO, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan Olzhas Bektenov addressed the participants of the meeting with a welcoming speech, emphasizing the role of railways in ensuring sustainable growth of the economies of the member countries. dialogue and strengthening partnership between countries.
The Head of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan informed the participants of the meeting that the country under the leadership of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has entered a new stage of development - in March this year, a new Constitution was adopted, which, among other things, will give additional impetus to economic development.
“The railway industry of Kazakhstan, which plays a crucial role in economic development, is focused on improving the quality of life of the population and sustainable growth. It is symbolic that the meeting dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the Organization is taking place here – at the crossroads of major routes in the heart of Eurasia. A modern and efficient transport system allows us to integrate into the world economy, integrating into international supply chains,” said Olzhas Bektenov. The Prime Minister also emphasized the further increase in Kazakhstan’s transit potential: “Our common goal is to turn Eurasia into a single, “seamlessly” functioning transport mechanism. Kazakhstan is the largest country in the world that does not have direct access to the ocean. But we are working to turn this geographical challenge into our strategic advantage. Over the past 15 years, we have allocated about 35 billion dollars to the transport sector. More than 2,500 km of new main roads have been built. Today, about 85% of all land transit traffic between Western Europe and Western China passes through Kazakhstan. We are not stopping there. In the next 4 years, we plan to build another 5 thousand km of new railways. Our goal is to increase the volume of transit to 100 million tons per year by 2035.
Among the key areas, he emphasized the development of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (Middle Corridor), within the framework of which the modernization of the railway and port infrastructure is underway. In particular, the container capacities of the ports of Aktau and Kuryk are being expanded with the involvement of international partners. By 2029, it is planned to increase transportation volumes from 80 thousand to 300 thousand TEU per year. Cargo delivery times have already been reduced to 18 days, and in the future they will be reduced to 10 days. The international transport corridor "North-South" is being developed, which provides the shortest access to the markets of the Persian Gulf and India.
The state's priority remains the introduction of digital technologies in the industry. "Attributing great importance to the development of digital technologies, 2026 was declared by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan as the "Year of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence". We are implementing the TezCustoms platform, which has reduced the time for clearance at the border with China from 8 hours to 30 minutes.
This work is also ongoing with other countries," emphasized Olzhas Bektenov, calling on the participants of the NEO to actively use advanced digital solutions to increase the throughput capacity of railways.
Chairman of the Board of JSC “National Company “Kazakhstan Temir Zholy”” Talgat Aldybergenov noted that it is significant that in the year of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the OSJD, the XL anniversary meeting of the Conference of General Directors (responsible representatives) of OSJD railways is being held on the Eurasian continent in the North-South and East-West directions, where rail transport is actively developing, which is the basis of the transport complex in the country, but also in the region as a whole. In Kazakhstan, new railway lines are being actively built, innovative and digital technologies are being introduced, which allow significantly accelerating rail transportation of passengers and cargo, increasing their efficiency.
In his welcoming address to the participants of the meeting, the Chairman of the Council for Railway Transport of the Commonwealth Member States Oleg Bilozerov noted that the true significance of the Organization is determined by the work of its members, and that it is the work of managers and experts that ensures the proper result.
The operational length of the railways of the SCO countries has reached 340 thousand km, which is a third of the world total (1 million km). Annually, the SCO members transport more than 5.5 billion tons of cargo, which is 50% of the world total, and more than 5.5 billion passengers.
The SCO has experienced a radical transformation of the socio-political system of the founding countries. It has witnessed the dismantling of the basic rules and practices of the world order, the collapse of the old ones and the formation of new political and economic communities, unprecedented in the scale of the pandemic.
Over the years, the appearance of the railways has also changed, and in a number of SCO member countries, this term itself today, with a large degree of convention, combines operators of mainline and terminal infrastructures

and, carriers and wagon owners.
Oleg Belozerov also noted that for a long time the Organization has ensured the logistical connectivity of the Eurasian region. The agreements and contracts of the SCO create full conditions for access to international transportation markets on a unified, predictable and mutually beneficial basis. From Poland to Laos, unified intergovernmental and commercial rules for international transportation, mutual settlements, and information exchange have been established. It was in the SCO that a multi-level system of railway law was created, which is still absent in most regions of the world.
Support by the participants of the Organization for a single regulatory and information field ensures the transportation of goods both between the railways of the SCO member countries and on international transport corridors connecting China and Europe across the vast expanse of the CIS.
Oleg Belozerov also focused on the well-known comprehensive project "INTERTRAN", created using the current regulatory and legal framework developed within the SCO, and which allows for intermodal transportation with the execution of electronic documents. The project involves: the carrier, the operator of the sea line, customs authorities, consignors of cargo and consignees.
“Today, railways are once again facing large-scale challenges. Among them is the ongoing restructuring of international relations, which sometimes leads to the fragmentation of the usual ties that seemed to exist. Climate change continues, new migration waves are constantly appearing. The fourth energy transition will add news, as well as, most likely, the inevitable qualitative leap in artificial intelligence systems,” said Oleg Bilozerov. He emphasized that it is possible to understand new challenges and formulate a response to them only through joint efforts of different countries. The documents developed in the SCO create unified, predictable and beneficial conditions for all participants in the international railway transportation market in the Eurasian space.
The Chairman of the NSO Committee, Myroslav Antonovych, emphasized in his speech that the creation of the NSO in 1956 was dictated by the need to ensure and develop international rail transportation in the Eurasian space. Over the 70 years of its existence, the Organization has carried out large-scale work to improve the main documents - the SMPS and SMGS agreements, the development of which was completed 75 years ago - in 1951. Within the framework of the NSO, 13 railway transport corridors have been developed and improved, the regulatory and technical base is constantly being improved, active cooperation is being carried out with international organizations, as a result of which, among other things, the CIM-SMGS consignment note has been created and is being actively implemented, work is being carried out to ensure the introduction of innovative digital technologies, environmental protection and improvement.
During the opening of the plenary session of the XL anniversary meeting of the Conference of General Directors (Responsible Representatives) of the Railways of the CIS, the meeting was chaired by Talgat Aldybergenov, Chairman of the Board of JSC "National Company "Chazakstan Temir Zholy", and then the meeting was chaired by Deputy Chairman Akhmetzhanov, and the secretary of the CIS Committee Attila Kishsh served as the meeting secretary.

The meeting was attended by 25 delegations of the railways of the CIS:

CJSC "Azerbaijan Railways" (CJSC "AZH"),
Afghanistan Railways Administration (ARA),
State Association "Belarusian Railways" (BC),
CJSC "MAV Hungarian State Railways" (CJSC "MAV"),
State Company "Vietnam Railways" (VZH),
JSC "Georgian Railways" (DR),
Railways of the Islamic Republic of Iran (RAI),
JSC "National Company "Kazakhstan Temir Zholy"" (KZH),
State Corporation "China Railways" (KZ),
Railways of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK),
Korean National Railway Corporation (KORAIL),
State Enterprise "National Company "Kyrgyz Temir Zholy"" (KRG),
State Enterprise "Lao National Railways" (LNZ),
DAT "Latvijas Dzelzceļš" (DAO "Latvian Railways") (LDZ),
JSC "Ulan Bator Railways" (JSC "UBZ"),
JSC "Polish State Railways" (PKP),
JSC "Russian Railways" (JSC "RZ"),
National Company of Romanian Railways "CFR" - A.O. ("CFR"-A.O."),
Railways of the Slovak Republic (ZSR),
DUP "Rokhy ohani Tochikiston" (TJZ),
Ministry of Railway Transport of Turkmenistan and ATVT "Demirelary" ("Turkmen Railways and Roads"),
JSC "Uzbekistan Temir Yollari" (UTI),
JSC "Ukrainian Railways" (UZ),
JSC "Czech Railways" (JSC "ČD"),
JSC Estonian Railways (EVR).
In addition, the meeting of the KMD was attended by representatives of the following affiliated enterprises of the OJSC: JSC "United Transport and Logistics Company - Eurasian Railway Alliance" (JSC "VITLK ERA"), CJSC "South Caucasus Railway" (JSC "YKZ", Armenia), Kazakhstan Freight Railway Carriers" (Kazakhstan), CJSC "Northeast Asia Railway Corporation" (China), North Star Sinogold Exhibition Co., Ltd (China), Shenzhen Neptune Logistics Co., Ltd (China), LLC SIS "Russian Post" (Russia), JSC "PLASKE" (Ukraine), Gepard Express SE (Czech Republic), as well as the Ministry of Transport of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Union of Transport Workers of Kazakhstan "Kazlogistics" (Kazakhstan), the Intergovernmental Commission TRACECA, the International Coordination

of the Trans-Eurasian Transportation Council.
Within the framework of the agenda, the participants of the XL meeting of the CMD discussed and approved the results of the work for 2025. transportation for the reporting period March 2025 - March 2026
In addition, the following issues were considered:
- the progress of mutual settlements and the mechanism for repaying debts between railways;
- the progress of the work of the Working Group on vocational education/training in the field of railway transportation;
- Report on the activities of the CMD for 2025;
- The CMD work program for 2027 and subsequent years;
- The budget of the CMD Committee (final - for 2026, and preliminary - for 2027);
- on establishing the order of the next meetings of the CMD;
- the preliminary agenda, date and venue of the XLI anniversary meeting of the CMD.
The Conference noted the successful implementation of the Program and Work Plan of the OSZ for 2025 and approved the "Report on the Activities of the OSZ for 2025", approved the "Work Program of the OSZ for 2027 and subsequent years" in the field of freight and passenger transportation, infrastructure and rolling stock, code.
In the field of work of the OSZ Commission on freight transportation, the following were approved with the entry into force:
- from June 1, 2026, amendments and additions to the Harmonized Nomenclature of Goods (HNG);
- from May 11, 2026, amendments to the OSZD Memorandum 405 "Regulations on the Creation and Maintenance of the List of Freight Stations of the OSZ Railways";
- from May 11, 2026, the Memorandum of the State Railways of Ukraine About 405 "Regulations on the Creation and Maintenance of the List of Freight Stations of the State Railways", V edition dated 05/11/2026, while its previous IV edition dated 05/15/2024 was canceled.
It was decided to continue work on:
- improving the Agreement on the Unified Transit Tariff (UTT) and updating the UTT;
- improving the Agreement on the International Railway Transit Tariff (IRT) and updating the IRT;
- improving the Agreement on the Use of Freight Wagons in International Traffic (PGV) and updating the Rules for the Use of Freight Wagons in International Traffic (Appendix B to the PGV Agreement);
- improving the Agreement on the Carriage of Containers as Part of Container Trains in International Traffic;
- coordinating the volumes of cargo transportation in international traffic;
- updating the Harmonized Nomenclature of Goods (HNG) with the participation of tariff specialists and experts of the PWG of the CI;
- ensuring the harmonization of the HNG and the Harmonized Nomenclature of Goods of the MSZ in cooperation with the Steering Committee on NHM;
- updating the List of freight stations of the OSZ railways in accordance with the OSZ Memorandum Pro 405 (V edition) with the participation of experts of the PWG of the CI;

- organization of container transportation in international traffic and transportation using the CIM/SMGS consignment note;
- development and organization of multimodal, intermodal, combined transportation in international traffic, including in mixed traffic;
- development and organization of postal shipments in international traffic in cooperation with the VVS, VToM, KSTP, EAEK, OJL "International Association "TMTM";
- coordination of freight train schedules in international traffic by the railway companies involved;
- development of cooperation with UN ESCAP, UN ECE, OECD, WCO, APU, EEC, IPC TRACECA, KSTP, OJL "International Association "TMTM", FIATA, CSZT and other interested international organizations and Turkish Railways and TC of logistics supply chains.
- on the transition to a digital model of coordination of foreign trade cargo transportation volumes.
The participants of the CMD - Parties to the Agreement on the Carriage of Containers in Container Trains in International Traffic will carry out further work to attract new interested participants to participate in this Agreement, which is open for accession by railway carriers and container train organizers.
The conference took note of the information on the practical experience of using the SMGS and CIM/SMGS consignment note when transporting goods by rail routes connected by water sections, using feeder vessels in order to expand the transportation of route container trains in international traffic on the basis of separate multilateral agreements.
Within the framework of the work of the NSO Commission on Passenger Transportation, it was decided to continue work on:
- development and approval of timetables and schemes for the formation of passenger trains in international traffic for 2026-2027. railways of NSO groups I and II;
- the topic "Systems of seat reservation, reference and information service for passengers, provision of services and formation of financial reporting, including issues of interaction of electronic reservation systems";
- improvement of the Agreement on International Railway Passenger Tariffs (Agreement on IRT) and the IRT itself, including taking into account the adopted amendments and additions to the SMPS;
- improvement of the Agreement on the "Rules for the Use of Passenger Wagons in International Traffic" (the Agreement on the PWR) and the PWRs themselves;
- the topic of "Management of Station Complexes".
The railways of the OJSC are instructed to continue work on the restoration of international passenger traffic on a bilateral and multilateral basis.
The Commission of the OJSC on Infrastructure and Rolling Stock is instructed to

to continue work in 2026 on the following topics:
- “Dimensions of rolling stock in international traffic, taking into account interoperability requirements”;
- “Railway track and artificial structures”;
- “SCS and communication networks”, including on the development of an innovative railway telecommunications system based on 4G/5G technology;
- “Power supply and electric traction devices”;
- “Rolling stock for railways. Technical requirements for its elements”;
- “Issues of competitiveness and increasing the efficiency of railway transport, taking into account technical aspects”.
The following NOZ memos were approved with the cancellation of their previous editions:
- on 512/1 “Decision on the unification of wheel sets for passenger and freight cars with roller bearings” (IV edition);
"Unification of requirements for passenger cars intended for the transportation of passengers in wheelchairs" (II edition);
- "Designation of freight cars with a gauge of 1520 mm" (II edition);
-Pro 592 "Maximum gross weight of containers allowed for transportation on platforms of existing models" (II edition);
"Innovative railway telecommunications system based on 4G/5G technology for railways of the NIS. Functional requirements" (I edition);
- "Conditions for passing rolling stock over railway bridges and determining the speed of movement depending on the technical condition" (I edition).
The members of the KMD were invited to intensify their participation in the activities of the Commission for the development of relevant technical documents on all elements of railway infrastructure and rolling stock (including such topics as “Innovative rolling stock”, “Requirements for VSM”, “Implementation of artificial intelligence in diagnostics and infrastructure diagnostics” and possibly other most significant ones), and the ESZZ Commission for Infrastructure and Rolling Stock in 2026 at its expert meetings, “round table” and final meeting was instructed to prepare proposals for the inclusion of new areas of activity in the draft Work Plan for 2027.
The ESZZ Permanent Working Group on Coding and Informatics was instructed to continue work on the following topics:
- “Coding and Informatics”;
- “Paperless technology for cargo transportation in international rail traffic”;
- “Conducting international financial settlements using paperless technology”;
- "Protection of information interaction and information and telecommunications infrastructure";
- "Website of the OSZ".
The following OSZ monuments were approved with the cancellation of their previous editions:
"Uniform coding and structure of data required in international freight traffic" (X edition dated 04/24/2026);
"List of classifiers and data element codes. Library of code lists for freight traffic under SMGS conditions" (XVIII edition dated 04/24/2026);
"Library of standard electronic messages in XML or JSON formats based on the Reference Data Model for Multimodal Transportation MMT RDM UN/CEFACT" (I edition dated 04/24/2026).
The continuation of work on the implementation of projects for information support of international railway freight traffic with the following data was approved:
- Naklodnieya SMGS;
- CIM/SMGS consignment note;
- about the train;
- other documents used in SMGS;
- accompanying documents (invoice, packing list);
- about consignors and consignees.

The PRG CI is instructed to continue work on the recognition and use of electronic transport documents with an electronic digital signature/electronic signature in cross-border communication between railway enterprises of the SCO member countries in accordance with the agreements concluded by them, as well as joint work with the PRGF on the development and implementation of electronic document flow in the financial sphere, provided that there are relevant agreements between the Parties to the Agreement on the Rules for Settlements in International Passenger and Freight Railway Communication.
In the field of activity of the Permanent Working Group of the NSO on Financial and Settlement Issues (PRGF), it was decided to continue work on updating the current Agreement on the Rules for Settlements in International Passenger and Freight Railway Traffic and the Rules for Settlements themselves, taking into account the modern conditions of railway transport, the terms of settlement for transportation in international railway traffic, the organization of electronic document flow in the field of financial relations.
The PRGF was instructed to continue the work of the group of experts on the areas of activity of the PRGF.
The approved preliminary agenda of the XLI meeting of the Conference includes consideration of the results of the work of the NSO Commissions on freight transportation, passenger transportation, infrastructure and rolling stock for 2026, as well as the Permanent Working Groups on Coding and Informatics and on Financial and Settlement Issues. It is planned to discuss the progress of mutual settlements and the mechanism for repaying debts between railways, the progress of the work of the Working Group on vocational education/training in the field of railway transportation, the Report on the activities of the OSZD for 2026, the OSZD Work Program for 2028 and subsequent years, the budget of the affiliated enterprise of the OSZ, the preliminary agenda, the date and venue of the XLII sessionThe Conference gratefully accepted the invitation of JSC "Uzbekistan Temir Yullari", which was conveyed by the First Deputy Chairman of the Board Hikmatulla Rakhmetov, to hold the XLI meeting of the CMD from April 12 to 16, 2027 in the Republic of Uzbekistan, as well as the statement of JSC "Gr 2028 in Georgia.
On the sidelines of the XL anniversary meeting of the KMD, an exhibition was organized, at which leading Kazakhstani companies in the field of railway transport presented their services and products in the field of construction and repair of railway infrastructure, production of rolling stock and railway equipment, and on April 21, a technical excursion was organized for the participants of the meeting to the plant at the Wabtec Corporation TM enterprise (a branch of the company "Transportation Global LLC" in Astana) where the process of assembling modern diesel locomotives of the TE33AT series with improved traction characteristics and reduced fuel consumption was shown, and at the Alstom electric locomotive assembly plant (EKZ) the process of production and maintenance of AZ8A (Prima T8), as well as transformers and traction converters was demonstrated. In addition, as part of getting acquainted with the history, culture and traditions of Kazakhstan, the participants of the meeting visited the Kazakh National Music and Drama Theater named after Kalibek Kuanyshbayev on April 22.
On April 23, as part of the XL anniversary meeting of the KMD, a solemn environmental event was held - the planting of 30 saplings on the “Friendship Alley of the Railways of the Central Asian Republics”. As part of the event, the heads of delegations and honored guests planted tree saplings as a sign of strengthening partnership, trust and long-term cooperation between railway administrations. The event was held in support of the republican environmental initiative “Taza Kazakhstan” and became a contribution to the greening of the city of Astana, reflecting the desire to form a more comfortable and environmentally sustainable urban environment. The “Friendship Alley of the Railways of the Central Asian Republics” is located on the territory of the Railwaymen’s Square, which JSC “NC “TZ” presented to residents and guests of the capital for the Day of Transport Workers in 2023.
Also, on the sidelines of the XL anniversary meeting of the KMD, numerous bilateral meetings were held, within the framework of which the parties discussed various issues of developing cooperation.
The participants of the XL anniversary meeting of the KMD expressed sincere gratitude to the Kazakh side and the staff of JSC "National Company "Kazakhstan Temir Zholy" headed by the Chairman of the Board Talgat Aldybergenov for the excellent organization and high level of the event, noting the traditional Kazakh hospitality of SMHS; and the creation of favorable conditions for constructive and fruitful work.
The decisions made during the XL anniversary meeting of the KMD will contribute to the further development of railway transport in all member countries of the Organization, increasing its efficiency and competitiveness, as well as strengthening cooperation and mutual trust between all railway administrations in the name of prosperity of the economies of all member states of the OC.