Iran, Iraq Vow to Broaden Railway Cooperation

Iranian Road and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami and his Iraqi counterpart Nasser Hussein al-Shibli in a meeting in Tehran on Sunday underlined the need to expand mutual cooperation in the transportation sector, specially railway.

During the meeting, Eslami pointed to the issue of transportation as a “vital lifeline of trade”, and voiced Iran’s readiness to support cooperation and strengthen relations between two neighboring countries to improve the quality of transportation.

Al-Shibli, for his part, emphasized the need for promoting the quality of land, sea, air, and rail transport between the two countries.

The Iraqi transport minister said that his country is ready to work on a transit system with the Iranian side according to the administrative instructions for transit cooperation with neighboring countries such as Turkey, Syria, and Jordan, and even start of cooperation with the Iranian side.

He went on to announce plans to hold meetings to resolve the remaining issues and finalize an agreement between the two countries.

The two sides also stressed the possibility of connecting the railway from Shalamcheh in Southwestern Iran to Basra province in Iraq.

During the meeting, he discussed residents of Shatt al-Arab and the cooperation of the two sides in facilitating navigation for its residents.

In a relevant development on Saturday, Eslami and his Iraqi counterpart in a meeting in Baghdad underlined the need to strengthen transportation cooperation between the two countries.

 During the meeting in the Iraqi capital today, the Iranian and Iraqi ministers explored avenues for bolstering and reinvigorating mutual cooperation in the field of economy, specially transportation.

The two sides also discussed the expansion of relations in the field of road, urban development, and transportation.

Eslami, meantime, announced his country’s readiness to expand cooperation and strengthen relations between the two neighboring countries.

The meeting focused on strengthening Iran-Iraq relations and cooperation to benefit from Tehran’s experience and technical capabilities in sea, air, and rail transportation.