At a grand ceremony in Delhi in 2023, India unveiled its most ambitious trade corridor, the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC). Yet halfway across the world, forces beyond its control are now derailing that vision, wrote Aditi Bhaduri on NDTV.

Turkey’s transportation minister recently announced that Turkey, Syria, and Jordan have agreed to modernise their railway systems to create a contiguous corridor between southern Europe and the Persian Gulf. This network, requiring four to five years and billions of dollars in investment, would revive Ottoman-era routes and reconnect Syria to Jordan, Lebanon, and the Gulf.

The reconstruction of Syria’s devastated infrastructure alone needs at least $5.5 billion. Once extended to Saudi Arabia, this corridor would form a North-South Gulf-Europe trade route, offering the shortest and most cost-effective path for goods and services. For India, however, it signals a setback to its connectivity ambitions in the Middle East and Europe.


The IMEC was unveiled during the Delhi G20 summit in September 2023 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and US President Joe Biden. The multimodal route was to begin in Mumbai, connect by sea to the UAE, and then continue via rail through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel, before reaching Europe through Haifa Port.

It was envisioned as an alternative to the Suez Canal and Russia’s land routes, especially after the Ukraine crisis. With costs estimated at $3–8 billion per route, IMEC promised to cut freight costs, boost economies, and counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Greece had even shown interest in joining. 

However, the project faced immediate setbacks when war broke out between Israel and Hamas in October 2023. The Houthis joined the conflict, targeting shipping, and violence engulfed the region from Jordan to Israel, crippling IMEC’s progress. Israel, a crucial node, became untenable.

The corridor’s success depended on Saudi-Israel normalisation, but the war complicated matters. While the UAE and Jordan had already normalised ties with Israel, Saudi Arabia accused Israel of genocide in Gaza and made normalisation conditional on a Palestinian state.

Reports now suggest Saudi Arabia is considering Syria as a transit country for a fibre-optic cable project with Greece, side-lining Israel. In February 2026, Saudi telecom firm STC Group announced an $800 million investment in Syria’s telecommunications infrastructure, signalling shifting alignments.

Saudi Arabia and Turkey, once at odds, are now converging strategically, meeting frequently with Egypt and Pakistan to form a regional security alliance. A Gulf-to-Europe corridor rerouted through Jordan, Syria, and Turkey bypasses Israel entirely, making Saudi-Israel normalisation even more unlikely. 

Reintegration of Syria into the region, backed by Saudi financing, could turn Damascus into a telecommunications and transport hub.

These developments coincide with a growing rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, who are engaged in proxy wars from Yemen to Sudan to Somalia. Israel’s move to station an ambassador in Somaliland was condemned by Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, while the UAE recognised Somaliland. IMEC requires massive infrastructure upgrades, but given strained Saudi-UAE ties, progress seems doubtful. 

The Iran war has further damaged regional infrastructure, with Haifa repeatedly struck by Iranian missiles and drones. The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz has pushed Saudi Arabia to rely more on Yanbu port, but Houthis could close Bab-El-Mandeb, another chokepoint. This makes the Syria-Turkey corridor more appealing, as it avoids Israel and the West Bank without requiring normalisation.

India’s connectivity ambitions are faltering. Having stepped back from the Chabahar port, a gateway to Central Asia and Europe, India now faces uncertainty over IMEC.

Meanwhile, Turkey is consolidating its role with its Development Road project with Iraq, creating a multimodal corridor from the Gulf to Turkey and Europe.

Turkey is also connected overland to China, which is leveraging the Middle Corridor route to Europe. India must therefore rethink its approach to connectivity and trade in the Gulf, as rival Turkey positions itself as the region’s key hub.

NDTV