Foreign & Public Diplomacy

The word on the street in the Middle East and United States is that Saudi Arabia wants to cut Israel out of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor. IMEC, as it is known, is a maritime and rail network that is supposed to connect India and Europe via the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel. It was announced with great fanfare at the G-20 summit in September 2023 and, from the perspective of U.S. officials, as an answer to China’s Belt and Road Initiative. At the time, it was hard to have a conversation about pretty much anything in Washington without hearing the words “great-power competition.”

A new proposed route would take the railway from Saudi Arabia into Jordan, Syria, and Turkey before connecting to Europe. And it’s not the only initiative that would bypass Israel. In June, Saudi Arabia and Turkey announced a plan to reconstruct the Hejaz Railway, which ran from Damascus through Jordan to Medina. For their part, the Israelis and Emiratis want to stick to the original plan. It is unclear how any change will fly with India, which affirmed its commitment to IMEC in February. India has important relations with both Israel and Saudi Arabia.

The word on the street in the Middle East and United States is that Saudi Arabia wants to cut Israel out of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor. IMEC, as it is known, is a maritime and rail network that is supposed to connect India and Europe via the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel. It was announced with great fanfare at the G-20 summit in September 2023 and, from the perspective of U.S. officials, as an answer to China’s Belt and Road Initiative. At the time, it was hard to have a conversation about pretty much anything in Washington without hearing the words “great-power competition.”

A new proposed route would take the railway from Saudi Arabia into Jordan, Syria, and Turkey before connecting to Europe. And it’s not the only initiative that........

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