Minister of Transport Razzaq Muhaibis Al-Saadawi stressed the importance of the quadripartite agreement with Turkey, Qatar and the Emirates regarding the development road.
A statement by the ministry said, “The Minister of Transport met in his office in Baghdad with his Turkish counterpart Abdul Qadir Oral Oglu and the accompanying delegation represented by Banil Bora Inan, the Turkish Ambassador to Baghdad, the Director General of International Relations at the Turkish Ministry of Transport and a number of officials, to discuss joint transportation projects between the two countries, most notably the strategic development road project and Turkey’s readiness to start implementing it.”
The statement added, “Al-Saadawi stressed during the meeting the interest of Prime Minister Mohammed Shiaa Al-Sudani and the services government in the necessity of completing the country’s service and strategic projects, the most important of which is the development road project, in the service of Iraq, its people and the re
gion as a whole.”
According to the statement, Al-Saadawi explained “the importance of the quadripartite agreement with Turkey, Qatar and the Emirates, which emphasizes the continuation of the meeting of representatives of the four countries within the specified time frames stipulated in the memorandum of understanding for the member states and holding the upcoming ministerial council meeting.”
Al-Saadawi stated, according to the statement, that “the activation of the Grand Faw Port, the first phase of which will be completed next year 2025, will be via old land and railway roads, stressing the ministry’s seriousness in working to restore and organize the internal railway network and benefit from it in operating the port until the completion of the development road project within the specified timeframes.”
The statement continued: “During the meeting, the exchange of expertise was discussed regarding civil aviation and air transport, and Turkey’s determination to send specialized experts to help Iraq meet t
he requirements for lifting the European ban to implement the requirements of international civil aviation organizations.”
In turn, the Turkish side, according to the statement, presented a future roadmap, indicating that “the goods that will arrive in Turkey through the development road project will be distributed through Turkey’s ports by land and sea.”
The statement indicated that “Oglu, for his part, confirmed that his country has completed all the infrastructure and requirements to start implementing the development road project for railways and land roads in Turkey, with the exception of 300 km, and next year will witness the completion of the project’s infrastructure completely.”
“Turkey welcomes establishing partnerships with Iraq in the field of railways and strengthening economic relations between the two sides, considering that the railway sector in Turkey is developed and it is possible to exchange experiences in this field,” Oral Oglu added, stressing “the necessity of holding the quadripartit
e ministerial meeting of the member states after the coordination committee completes its meetings within the timeframes stipulated in the quadripartite memorandum of understanding and emphasizing the importance of holding a meeting of the permanent committee within the strategic framework agreement between the two countries.”
Source: National Iraqi News Agency