Iraq takes first steps towards a mega-port project on the Gulf Sea

The Iraqi government on Thursday received five berths of Al-Faw Grand Port in southern Basra province from the South Korean company Daewoo in charge of the project. Iraqi Prime Minister al-Sudani presided over the handover ceremony of the five berths, according to a statement from al-Sudani's media office.

On the Gulf Sea, the port is located around a hundred kilometres south of the city of Basra, on a strip of Iraqi land wedged between neighbouring Kuwait and Iran. The Iraqi government proposed the Development Road Project, a massive infrastructure project, in May 2023, with the goal of linking southern Iraq to the country's border with Türkiye, further extending into European rail and road networks.