Turkey promotes $25B Iraqi transportation route over the India-European corridor

Alper Ozel advocated for increased connectivity along China's Belt and Road Initiative, also known as the Middle Corridor, a route that Turkey refers to as such. 

As the natural link between Asia and Europe, Turkey is arguably one of the most vulnerable nations to shifts in trade routes, as the Ottomans painfully learned during the Age of Discovery. The alarm raised by the chairman of the International Transporters' Association in the Turkish commercial hub Ozel, along with subsequent events, underscore Turkish unease regarding new initiatives such as the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), which was unveiled last month during the Group of 20 summit. Additionally, Ankara's resolve to fortify routes that strategically position Turkey is noteworthy.

Bypassing Turkey, the proposed IMEC would travel from India to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel before arriving in Europe.

According to an interview, this month's gathering of Turkish, Iraqi, Emirati, and Qatari officials was to work on the Iraq Development Road project. This was said by Turkey's Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloglu. This was described as a "serious alternative" to IMEC by the minister.

The "dry canal," as the Iraqi project was also called, would be used to move cargo from the Grand Faw port in southern Iraq. Daewoo Engineering & Construction of South Korea is developing the port's initial phase. The route would cover 1,200 kilometers of roads and railroads to reach Turkey's northern border.

The minister stated that 320 km of new highways and 615 km of new railway would be constructed on Turkey's end to link it to the Turkish network, at a total cost to both countries of about $25 billion.