Iraq's prime minister along with Iran's ambassador, Mohammad Kazem Al-e Sadegh, met with Iran's Vice President in the inauguration ceremony of the construction operation of the project at Iran's zero border point.
Bassem Awadi, the spokesman for the Iraqi government, said the steps stipulated in Resolution 23333 of the Council of Ministers concerning the implementation of the railway project linking Iraq’s Basra with the Iranian border town of Shalamcheh have already been taken, and today the executive phase of the project will commence.
This significant regional transport project will also aid in transporting visitors and pilgrims from Central Asian nations to Iraq, he added.
This project serves as the first step in a series of strategic transport initiatives connecting Iraq with its neighboring countries, according to him.
Iran and Iraq's top officials signed the agreement for the Shalamcheh-Basra Railway on 26 December 2021.
Prior to this, plans were shelved in 2014, the same year that Daesh Takfiri terrorists overran large swathes of land in northern Iraq and eastern Syria.
After repeated delays, efforts were revived in April with Baghdad and Tehran agreeing to implement the railway link during a meeting between Iraqi Minister of Transport Razzaq Mohibis al-Saadawi and the Iranian Minister of Roads and Housing Mehrdad Bazrpash in the Iranian capital.
The railway project will reportedly become operational within the next 18 months.
Shalamcheh-Basra Railway marks a historical link as negotiations for a 32 km railway between Iran and Iraq have been ongoing for about the last 20 years.
SD/IRN85217860
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