Iran advances 263km rail link to Iraq via Khosravi

Shafaq News- Tehran/ Baghdad

Iran is completing the 263-kilometer Kermanshah–Khosravi railway as Iraq moves forward with a parallel line to establish a cross-border trade corridor, Iranian presidential aide Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah said on Tuesday.

According to Iranian media, Ghaempanah explained during a site visit that the route will carry cargo from northwestern Iran and neighboring states into Iraq and back, boosting economic activity in Kermanshah province.

Approved in 2012, the project ranks among western Iran’s largest rail developments and will connect directly to Iraq’s network at the Khosravi crossing.

Iraq is also progressing on the 36-kilometer Basra–Shalamcheh railway, a cross-border line expected to serve more than 5 million passengers annually and link southern Iraq with Iran’s rail system. In January, Mehdi Safari, head of the North-South and East Trade Alliance, identified both lines as “strategic connectors,” Iranian outlets said at the time.

The Khosravi crossing, the planned terminus of the rail line, recorded over $700 million in exports and more than 700 trucks daily in recent months, making it Iran’s busiest customs point.