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Turkish minister hints UAE and Qatar joining mega project

By Pramod Kumar
Turkish minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said the Development Road project is in the final stages Abdulkadir Uraloglu/X
Turkish minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu said the Development Road project is in the final stages

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar are considering joining the mega Development Road project, which will link southern Iraq to Turkey, a senior Turkish minister has said. 

“We will implement the project hopefully, in collaboration with Iraq. The UAE and Qatar also seem to be interested in this process,” transport and infrastructure minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu told Anadolu Agency, Turkey’s state-run news agency.

The minister said the project is in the final stages, adding that the investment will be around $15 billion.

“When we transfer cargo from the sea route to the railway here, we will be able to reach every corner of Europe by railway or ensure re-transfer from any port in Turkey to the sea,” he added.

In September 2023, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lauded plans for a $17 billion infrastructure and transportation project linking southern Iraq to Turkey as an opportunity to “build a new world.”

The Development Road project will link Grand Faw Port, a commodities port in Iraq, by rail and road to the border with Turkey. It will transform the country into a transit hub by reducing travel time between Asia and Europe in a bid to rival the Suez Canal.

The project was announced in May and is expected to be completed in 2025.

The corridor will pass through the Gulf countries and Iraq and go to Europe through Turkey, Daily Sabah newspaper reported citing an Erdoğan speech at the Concordia Annual Summit in New York.

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