Türkiye, Jordan and Syria agreed to develop a North–South trade and transport corridor during a meeting of the transport ministers in Amman, Jordan on April 7. Türkiye’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, his Jordanian counterpart Nidal Qatamin, and Syrian Transport Minister Yarub Badr, signed a trilateral memorandum of understanding on transport cooperation on to strengthen regional connectivity and boost trade across a key North–South corridor incorporating land, rail and sea transportation.
“This is not merely a technical meeting on transport, but a strong declaration of will for the welfare of our peoples and regional development,” Türkiye’s Uraloğlu said after the meeting.
Stressing the strategic importance of establishing a fully functional North–South transport corridor, supported by modernized road and rail infrastructure, Uraloğlu pointed to reviving the Hejaz Railway—originally built by Ottoman Sultan Abdulhamid II and inaugurated in 1908 to link Istanbul with Mecca, Medina, Yemen and Damascus—in line with modern standards, while also prioritizing the development of new rail connections among the three countries.
The MOU also refers to maritime transport through the development of the Mediterranean ports of Syria and Türkiye. In his statement, Uraloğlu further pointed to the integration of maritime routes, noting that Türkiye and Syria’s Mediterranean port and Jordan’s Red Sea via the Gulf of Aqaba, “which can serve as a land-sea bridge, transporting goods arriving from the north to the Red Sea and beyond,” he said.
As a follow up to the meeting, technical delegations are expected to visit Saudi Arabia next week as part of broader efforts to extend connectivity across the Arabian Peninsula and link it to Central Asia and Europe.
Speaking at the April 6 EIR Emergency Roundtable, “A Dialogue of Civilizations: Is There Still Time to Prevent the War Against Iran from Escalating into a Global Nuclear Conflict?”, Schiller Institute founder Helga Zepp-LaRouche, in presenting the Institute’s Oasis Plan for the development of war-torn Southwest Asia, noted the need for creating transportation and railway infrastructure for integrating the region both internally and between Eurasia and Africa.
