The law was adopted by the State Duma on February 13 and approved by the Federation Council on February 27, 2002.
The agreement concerned was signed in St Petersburg on September 12, 2000 by Russia, Iran, India and the Sultanate of Oman, and laid the foundation for cooperation between Russia, India, Iran, and Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf countries in exploiting the existing transport infrastructure. The corridor will run from the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf across Iran, the Caspian Sea and Russia to Western and North-Western Europe.
Compared with the existing route via the Suez Canal, cargo transportation through the North-South corridor will reduce costs by 15–20% and cut delivery times by 15–20 days. Annual earnings from the corridor are estimated at $5–6 billion.