Shafaq News/ Completing the Basra-Shalamcheh railway is a priority for the Iraqi government, Hazim Majid Naji, an adviser to Iraq's prime minister, said on Sunday.
Naji's remarks came during a meeting with Iran's Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance, Ehsan Khandozi, in Tehran earlier today.
"The relations between the two countries have improved significantly over the past year under the leadership of Iraqi President 'Abdul Latif Rashid' and Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani," Khandozi said in a press conference after a meeting at the ministry's headquarters, "it is time to transcend political issues to establish deeper relationships and create diverse economic zones."
Addressing the procedures undertaken for the completion of the Shalamcheh-Basra railway project, Khandozi shed light on ongoing negotiations with companies willing to partake in the free trade areas between the two countries as well as the joint industrial zones.
The adviser to the Iraqi prime minister said that the completion of the Shalamcheh-Basra railway is a priority for the Iraqi government.
"All issues and problems that complicated this case have been identified, and all necessary approvals were obtained two days before the visit to Iran in meetings with officials of both countries," he explained, "all the equipment and personnel are in place, obstacles have been removed, and we are ready to activate this project."
Naji asserted the Iraqi government's drive to implement the agreements reached with Iran as swiftly as possible, with an emphasis on establishing joint free trade and industrial areas with Iran.
Earlier in April 2023, Iraq signed an deal with Iran to establish a railway for passenger transport between the cities of Shalamcheh and Basra. The agreement includes the de-mining of the areas ravaged by the eight-year war between the two nations and the establishment of a movable bridge on the Shatt al-Arab, anticipated to be completed in a year and a half.