India, the United States, Saudi Arabia, and the European Union announced on Saturday a historic agreement to soon launch a mega India-Middle East-Europe shipping and railway connectivity corridor.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement for the ambitious project on the sidelines of the G20 Summit and was flanked by US Vice President Joe Biden, Saudi Arabian Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, and leaders of the EU.
This is a historic and first-of-its-kind initiative on cooperation on connectivity and infrastructure involving India, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, the EU, France, Italy, Germany, and the US.
Speaking after the launch, PM Modi said, “I cordially welcome you all to this event. I am very happy to co-chair this event with my friend, President Joe Biden. Today we all witnessed the conclusion of a historic and important agreement. In the coming days, it will be an effective medium of economic integration between India, South Asia, and Europe”.
Speaking at the Bharat Mandapam venue of the G20 Summit here, PM Modi said the mega-deal will give a sustainable direction to connectivity and sustainability across the world.
He also congratulated all the leaders who were part of the connectivity corridor.
“Strong connectivity and infrastructure are the foundation of the development of human civilization. India has given this issue utmost priority during its course of development. Along with physical infrastructure, unprecedented investments are being made in social, economic, and financial infrastructure as well,” PM Modi said.
He added, “Through this, we are laying a strong foundation for a developed India. As a reliable partner, India has set up infrastructure projects in the fields of railways, energy, and technology partnerships among the nations of the Global South. We have laid special emphasis on a demand-driven and transparent approach”.
The Prime Minister further stressed respecting sovereignty and regional integrity and stated that connectivity between different countries not only increases business but also trust between them.
“We believe connectivity between different countries increases not only business but also trust between them. By promoting the connectivity initiative, we need to ensure we stick to philosophies, that is, adhesion to international rules, respect for all nations’ sovereignty, and regional integrity,” PM Modi said.
The infrastructure deal is expected to connect countries in the Middle East via a network of railways. The network will also connect to India through shipping lanes from ports in the region.
White House Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer had earlier said that “the deal will benefit low- and middle-income countries in the region and enable a critical role for the Middle East in global commerce. We see this as having a high appeal to the countries involved and also globally because it is transparent, has a high standard, and is not coercive”.
Delving more into the initiative, Finer noted it was not just a railway project but more of a shipping and railway project.
“It is not just the railway project; it is a shipping and railway project, and it is important for people to understand how expansive, ambitious, and ground-breaking this will be,” Finer added.
Finer termed this to-be-built project an “affirmative positive” aimed at serving the underserved.
“The way we see the infra project, it is an affirmative, positive project. It has appeal for countries underserved by infrastructure. We are not asking countries to make a zero-sum choice. We have seen other efforts that are not as ambitious, and we feel good about the contrast of what we provide, the White House Deputy National Security Advisor said.
Addressing the Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment (PGII) and India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor program at Bharat Mandapam.