Development Road Project to boost exports to Asia, says Trade Minister Bolat

Trade Minister Omer Bolat Monday said the Development Road Project could stimulate exports to Asia.

Bolat indicated that the Development Road could positively impact Türkiye’s export figures.

Highlighting their close cooperation with the Iraqi government for the project’s realization, Bolat stated: “We have agreed with Iraq on creating an alternative corridor based on mutual trust and cooperation in transportation. We expect the project to positively affect our exports and logistics capacity, especially towards Iraq, which ranks third in our overall exports with $12.8 billion.”

“Additionally, this project will ease our access to the Indian Ocean and Gulf countries via Iraq, increasing our effectiveness in regional trade. Furthermore, the project could also stimulate exports to Southeast Asian countries, positively reflecting on our export figures,” he said.

Bolat emphasized Turkish firms could play critical roles in the project’s construction phase, saying, “Our negotiations with the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia continue to include investor countries and institutions in the project’s financing.”

“In addition to Türkiye and Iraq, we have implemented the ‘Development Road Project Joint Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding’ with the participation of Qatar and the UAE. We are acting to extend our gains to all countries by including regional countries,” Bolat said.

Minister Bolat stated that with the construction of the 1,200-kilometer-long (

Minister Bolat stated that constructing the 1,200-kilometer-long (745.6-miles) road and railways would create a complementary corridor to other initiatives on the Eurasian axis.

“In the north, west, and east, we are creating an additional route in the south to existing lines such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars Corridor and the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul Corridor, further advancing our country’s position as a ‘hub,'” he said.

Bolat also noted that the opening of the Ovakoy-Fishkhabur Border Gate would contribute to border trade, ensure faster and uninterrupted access to Iraq, and facilitate customs procedures.

“In the north, west, and east, we are creating an additional route in the south to existing lines such as the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars Corridor and the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul Corridor, further advancing our country’s position as a ‘hub,'” he said.

Bolat also noted that the opening of the Ovakoy-Fishkhabur Border Gate would contribute to border trade, ensure faster and uninterrupted access to Iraq, and facilitate customs procedures.