Iraq launches $17 billion road, rail project to link Asia and Europe

Baghdad, The Gulf Observer: Iraq launched a $17 billion project on Saturday to link a major commodities port on its southern coast by rail and roads to the border with Turkiye, in a move designed to transform the country’s economy after decades of war and crisis.

According to Reuters, the Development Road aims to tie the Grand Faw Port in Iraq’s oil-rich south to Turkiye, turning the country into a transit hub by shortening travel time between Asia and Europe in a bid to rival the Suez Canal.

“The Development Road is not just a road to move goods or passengers. This road opens the door to development of vast areas of Iraq,” Farhan al-Fartousi, director general of the General Company for Ports of Iraq, told media.

Iraq’s government envisions high-speed trains moving goods and passengers at up to 300 kilometres (186.41 miles) per hour, links to local industry hubs and an energy component that could include oil and gas pipelines.

It would mark a significant departure from the country’s existing aged transport network.

Iraq’s train service currently operates a handful of lines, including slow oil freight and a single overnight passenger train that trundles from Baghdad to Basra, taking 10 to 12 hours to cover 500 kilometres.

The Grand Faw Port, which was devised over a decade ago, is halfway to completion, Fartousi said.

Passenger transport between Iraq and Europe harkens back to grand plans at the turn of the 20th century to create a Baghdad to Berlin express.