Vital Railroad Network Taking Shape in West Asia

By:Kayhan Int’l 

In today’s world, if the airways are used for speedy travel of passengers and quick transfer of normally lightweight cargo, and if ocean liners transport goods in bulk quantity and heavy merchandise between far-flung geographical areas of the globe, what indicates the trade-economic-industrial progress of a country and subsequently of the region in which it is located, is an efficient railroad network.

Thanks to the victory of the Islamic Revolution, Iran’s almost 30,000 km rapidly growing railway network is the largest in Western Asia (Turkey and Pakistan included), and annually transports some 33 million tons of goods in addition to 29 million passengers. 

In view of Iran’s strategic geo-political situation, the Iranian railway network, besides links to neighbouring Turkey and Pakistan, is connected to that of Central Asia through Turkmenistan (all the way to China), as well as to the Azerbaijan-Caucasus network which through Moscow reaches Finland.

Such vital connections facilitate trade and commerce, with brighter prospects in the future for the collective development of the entire region.  

At the moment, it is nothing but a daydream to think that old rivals Pakistan and India will bury the hatchet to open up their border railway links for commerce and passengers that would greatly benefit trade between Iran and the Subcontinent as well.

The Islamic Republic of Iran, which is in the process of laying tracks to its borders with Afghanistan on the northeast and to Armenia on its northwest, is now all geared up to build an important railroad connection through its western borders, from Khosravi to the Iraqi capital Baghdad and thence to Damascus, with a branch to Syria’s Mediterranean port of Banias and an extension to Beirut in Lebanon, in addition to linking its southwestern region of Shalamcheh to Basra, the starting point of Iraq’s almost 2,000 km railway network.

As part of this plan, Iran, Iraq and Syria are to hold a trilateral meeting on the connection of their railway systems into one, which will not only strengthen trade and economy, but will facilitate pilgrimage by tens of millions of devotees to the holy shrines in the three countries. 

According to Syria’s ‘al-Watan’ newspaper: "Now, the three countries are working on resumption of the project connecting the railways of Syria, Iran and Iraq.” 

With the weeding out of the terrorists from Syria, as well as from Iraq, there should be no impediment to completion of this vital railway project, which would be beneficial for not just the collective development of the three countries, which along with Lebanon form the Resistance Front, but also for peace, political stability and security against terrorism – both non state actors and the state terrorism of the illegal Zionist regime.

This is the reason Israel and the US, the godfather of terrorism, have expressed worries and are desperately trying to throw spanner in the works. 

It is worth recalling that last March, Iran and Iraq signed five memorandums of understanding to expand their economic ties, one of which includes the construction of the railway line.

For their part, Syria and Iraq are jointly exploring the feasibility of linking Deir az Zore and al-Qa’em.  

The sooner the project is completed the better for regional and international peace and development, in view of the fast coming North-South Transportation Corridor, which through Iran, connects India with the landlocked Central Asia countries, also via the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Caucasus to Russia and Finland.

An industrially formidable Iran will indeed by immune from the illegal sanctions of its archenemy as well as any mischief by the Zionists and the Arab reactionary regimes to destabilize West Asia, either directly or through their terrorist protégés.