‘No corridor without Turkey’: Erdogan opposes India-Middle East-Europe mega project

One of the biggest successes of the G20 Summit 2023 under India’s presidency was the announcement of India-Middle East-Europe economic corridor, but one of the leaders of the group member countries, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has been opposing it. The Turkish leader is unhappy as his country has been bypassed in creation of the trade corridor that would link Asia to Europe. Why is Erdogan opposing India-Middle East-Europe corridor? Erdogan said, “There is no corridor without Turkey.” Talking to journalists who were accompanying him to the G20 Summit in New Delhi on 9 and 10 September, Erdogan said: “The most convenient line for traffic from east to west has to pass through Turkey.” As per Erdogan, the UAE President suggested that negotiations be completed within 60 days, and the foundations for the project be laid immediately. The economic corridor including shipping and railway links, will be a historic initiative on cooperation on connectivity and infrastructure. It involves India, UAE, Saudi Arabia, EU, France, Italy, Germany and the US. The shipping and railway lines will pass through the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel, then reach to Greece and Europe. The project, in its current form, however, bypasses Turkey. During the G20 Summit in New Delhi, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the corridor was signed by the European Union, India, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the US and other G20 partners. One of the main objectives of the project is to cut shipping times by 40 percent and save money on other costs, and fuel use. The ambitious scheme is estimated to require an investment of around $17bn, with projected annual returns of $4bn and the creation of a minimum of 100,000 jobs. With inputs from agencies