Iran, Pakistan, Turkey Agree to Resume Cargo Transit via ITI Corridor

Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey have worked out a new mechanism in cooperation with the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) to revive cargo transit activity on the Istanbul-Tehran-Islamabad (ITI) train corridor.

A Wednesday report by Iran’s official IRNA news agency said that ECO Secretary General Asad Majeed Khan had chaired a two-day working group meeting of senior transport officials from Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey in Islamabad earlier this week to discuss initiatives for reviving cargo transit on the ITI.

It said officials from the three countries had agreed to balance their customs duties and remove barriers on the borders while observing issues like transshipment and train schedules to help revive activity on the corridor.

The en-route countries also made a commitment that at least one train should travel on the ITI corridor every month, the report said.

The ITI is a 6,540-kilometer railroad corridor that reduces freight transport time between Islamabad and Istanbul to 10 days from nearly a month in shipping

The corridor was launched as a pilot project in 2009 before it became operational in December 2021. However, ECO’s Trade and Development Bank has thrown its weight behind the project to help revive transit activity on the corridor.

ECO said in a statement on its website that it was committed to fostering trade, integration, and sustainable development through regional and international transport corridors.

Iran expects to benefit from transit fees on the corridor while further establishing its position as a major transit territory in the region. - Press TV