Mr. Ambassador met with Minister of Transport

Minister of Transport Razak Muhibis Al-Saadawi received Ambassador and Trade Counselor of the Czech Republic in his ministerial office on October 30, 2023. Both sides discussed posibilities of participation of Czech companies in new transportation projects in Iraq. The Czech Republic is traditionally most interested in the areas of public transport, railway projects and traffic management (telematics and smart city solutions).

There is currently a 17 bil USD Eurasian Corridor project under preparation in Iraq - often called in local media as "development road" or "dry canal". It is a project of a 1,200 km long high-speed railway and highway running parallel to it, which should connect the newly built Grand Faw Port in the Arabian Gulf with Turkey. According to the minister, the Development Road project will be officially launched in 2024. The corridor will become the basis for other future development projects in Iraq.

Road vehicles and "other transport means" are traditionally among the largest export items of the Czech Republic to Iraq. In 2022, the Czech Republic exported 117 mil USD worth of road vehicles to Iraq.

Prepared by: Mr. Roman Plevák, Embassy of the Czech Republic in Baghdad