The president of Iraq's rail company, Ghassan Abdelrazzak al-Ani, said Monday that Turkey had expressed its desire to establish a rail link with Iraq.
The link would have to pass through Syria, as there is no direct route between Iraq and Turkey, Ani told the official INA news agency. Ani added that a meeting between the railway companies from the three countries will take place shortly to get the project underway.
A railway line from Istanbul to Baghdad via Syria was constructed under the Turkish Ottoman Empire which collapsed after World War I.
Train services between Iraq and Syria resumed Friday for the first time since 1981. The 14-hour, 520-kilometer (323-mile) journey will be made once a week for now, linking Mosul and Aleppo.
© Agence France Presse 2000
© 2000 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
