‘Longer but safer’ routes may beat speed: France says IMEC ‘more necessary amid crises in Gaza, Iran and Hormuz’ | Today’s news
According to Gérard Mestrallet, Special Envoy of the French President for IMEC, the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) is necessary due to ongoing crises in the Middle East, including the war in Gaza, tensions in Iran and risks of disruption around the Strait of Hormuz.
“The issues — October 7, Gaza, Iran, Hormuz — have even increased the need to have a resilient corridor that offers multiple options to the market,” Mestrallet said at an event in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Mestrallet was in New Delhi for the launch of the IMEC Ports Club together with Christophe Castaner, Chairman of the Port of Marseille-Fos. He said the corridor is increasingly seen not as a single fixed route, but as a network of complementary routes that can provide alternatives when one route is disrupted.
“IMEC is now considered a network of complementary routes to make it more resilient. More resilient, meaning that if there is a blockage, an accident, a technical problem or even a local crisis on one particular route, the other routes will be available,” he said.
IMEC was announced in September 2023 by India, the United States, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, France, Germany, Italy and the European Union.
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“IMEC aims to create infrastructure to connect three continents – India, the Middle East and Europe – through freight and container transport, energy and data transmission,” Mestrallet said.
The corridor is designed to connect India with the Middle East and Europe through a combination of maritime, rail, energy and digital infrastructure.
Mestrallet said that IMEC should not be seen only as an economic or infrastructure initiative.
“We consider this project not only as a technical or economic project but also as a geo-strategic project to strengthen the ties between India and Europe,” he said.
The current geopolitical environment has strengthened the case for alternative routes, Mestrallet said.
The French envoy said the market itself will ultimately determine which routes are used, with infrastructure performance, cost and speed remaining important factors. However, growing risks in the Middle East place greater emphasis on resilience.
“Sometimes it will be cheaper and more competitive to take a longer route, but safer,” Mestrallet said, explaining how rising risks can change the economics of trade routes through higher insurance costs.
“The perfect project for the next day”
Mestrallet said the current turmoil should not be seen as undermining the long-term importance of IMEC.
“Obviously, the Middle East is in trouble today and IMEC will be the perfect project for the day after,” he said.
The Commissioner also pointed to the recently concluded India-EU Free Trade Agreement as a potential driver of future demand for the corridor.
“The free trade agreement that was recently signed between the EU and India will obviously increase trade, increase transport and increase exchange between India and the EU,” he said.
“In order to be able to transport this additional goods, additional traffic, additional infrastructure is needed. And IMEC is exactly for that,” added Mestrallet.
Ports are getting ready for IMEC
The French envoy also emphasized the growing role of ports in the preparation of the corridor.
“Ports are organizing themselves to meet the challenges of IMEC,” he said.
The IMEC Ports Club was launched in New Delhi as an initiative involving ports from countries connected to the corridor or interested in cooperating with the corridor.
Mestrallet said the initiative reflects a growing interest in developing the infrastructure needed to make IMEC functional and resilient.
He also said several countries and ports outside the original eight signatories have expressed interest in cooperating with or joining IMEC, naming Egypt, Lebanon and Oman, while Greece and Cyprus want to join as full members.
IMEC and China’s BRI
As for whether IMEC can compete financially with China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Mestrallet said the two projects operate on fundamentally different models.
“The concept is very different. So we cannot compare the competitiveness of BRI and IMEC financing,” he said.
“For the BRI, there is one central bank that finances the project. Depending on the country, depending on the nature of the sector, we will bring together different groups,” he added.
