Turkey remains bridge between civilisations in railway plans

Turkey’s largest city, Istanbul, is famous for being the only metropolitan region in the world that spans two continents, sitting as it does in both between Asia and Europe. This idiosyncrasy of the city has made it a popular tourist destination due to the diversity of culture and architecture, but on a wider scale, the geopolitical significance of Turkey is growing and will indeed grow further if two major infrastructure plans in the Middle East and Asia take shape in the next few decades.

The North-South railway and the Trans-Asian railway share two similarities, they are both mega-projects that involve several countries and seek to link their region of the world to the major consumer market that is Europe. In addition, they both seek to do this via Turkey, the gateway between civilisations, which will benefit as a transfer hub for both passenger and freight traffic.

The North-South railway project will not influence Turkey for many years to come, it is currently under construction in Saudi Arabia and has another 2,400 kilometres or so to go before it links up to existing railways lines that will provide access to the commercial heart of the country, Istanbul and, more importantly for Saudi Arabia and the wider GCC region, Europe.

Saudi Arabia has been investing heavily in infrastructure such as railways and began planning the North-South railway as a means by which to better integrate the economies of the GCC with Europe. The 2,400 kilometre network will link Riyadh and several other cities in the kingdom with the existing railway line to Damman in Syria, via the border with Jordan. It will enable Saudi Arabia, a major regional power, to more efficiently export petroleum products, while better enabling the transfer of passenger traffic as well.

Once this is done, the North-South line will have access to Turkey via our existing railway links with Jordan and Syria, which will provide the Kingdom with a thoroughfare to Europe, as Turkey’s railway network linking us to the west is already highly developed. The project will benefit the wider GCC region as several smaller Middle Eastern countries have expressed an interest in developing railway links with Saudi Arabia.

On a much grander scale, and of far more significance for Turkey is the Trans-Asian railway, a massive railway project that is being spearheaded by China and will be of great economic significance to Turkey. The 14,000 kilometre project has been in the works since the 1960s, but has been held up by world events, trans-national disagreements and funding problems.

As well as this, its completion is hindered by its size, which necessarily means that it will take decades to complete. Currently, China is in talks with Thailand over a railway link between their two countries, which is expected to cost around US $9.7 billion and take several years to construct, which reveals the distance and money still to be covered by the railway.

However, its potential economic benefit for Turkey is huge, something akin to what the Panama Canal is for Panama, a major revenue source. Revenue will be generated not only through the charge for transferral through the country, but also through the range of investment that will be made in the country once we are fully linked to the major economies of Asia.

Passengers and freight will pass back and forth quickly and efficiently, boosting bilateral trade considerably, and although this possibility remains just that, a possibility, it has currency in the real world and in the present, as was recently seen when Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visited Ankara to smooth over a diplomatic spat between the two governments.

In mid-2009, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan reacted angrily to China’s handling of the Uyghur riots, which saw thousands injured and over 100 people killed in clashes with police, while nine people were later hanged for their part in the violent protests in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Because of Turkey’s sizeable Uyghur population, the government was particularly critical of the violent state reaction and comparisons to genocide were made.

Trade and Industry Minister Nihat Ergun went so far as to call for an embargo on Chinese goods imported into the country. In October of 2010, however, when the Chinese Premier visited the capital, it was the Asian superpower that had come to repair bilateral ties and make amends, which shows the significance with which Turkey is now seen as a potential link between two great continents, both of which we are a part of.