Israeli press: Tel Aviv is worried about losing its strategic importance in the region if it remains outside IMEC

In the news of Channel 13 television broadcasting in Israel, it was stated that Türkiye was carrying out diplomatic contacts with the USA to prevent the corridor from passing through Israel.

In the news, it was noted that Egypt was disturbed by the possibility of losing the revenue it obtained from the Suez Canal with the IMEC project, and Syria wanted the route to be connected to its ports instead of Haifa.

Former Israeli National Security Council President Giora Eiland stated in her statement to Channel 13 that her country would lose all its logistical and strategic advantage in the Middle East if the corridor bypasses Israel and connects the East and the West.

“THE ECONOMIC BILL WILL BE VERY HEAVY”

Regarding the possibility of Israel's exclusion, Eiland said, "The economic cost would be very heavy, losses would be high, and Israel's strategic position would begin to decline. This is not a situation that can be compensated for in a few years, because it is an investment project that spans decades." he said.

Hezi Halavia, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Israel Ports Company, pointed out that the current bureaucratic processes in Israel slow down the progress of the project and stated that regional actors make decisions and implement them faster, free from these obstacles.

Former Israeli Naval Forces Commander Eliezer Alfred Marom emphasized that Türkiye's weight on regional diplomacy and politics directly affects the current structure of the project.

Marom said, "The party leading this axis of resistance is primarily Turkey. Turkey wants to establish a hegemony in the entire Islamic world, and of course, there are other actors such as Syria, which has become a complete extension of Türkiye." he said.

Noa Shustherman Dvir, a researcher at the MIND Israel think tank, which provides consultancy to national security institutions in Israel, underlined that the Tel Aviv administration remained quite passive in advancing the processes and emphasized that staying out of IMEC would make her country an "excluded actor" in global trade.

IMEC PROJECT

India, the USA, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), France, Germany, Italy and the European Union (EU) signed a memorandum of understanding in September 2023 on the establishment of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, which aims to improve trade, energy transfer and digital connectivity.

The project consists of two main routes: the "Eastern Corridor" connecting India to West Asia and the Middle East, and the "Northern Corridor" connecting the region to Europe.

The route runs from Mumbai, India, by sea to Dede Port in the UAE, then by rail to Israel's Haifa Port, via the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, then by sea to Piraeus, Greece, and to Europe by land.

IMEC Ports Club was officially launched in May, following the memorandum of understanding signed between the ports of India and France in February.