Long-term transport projects brought to table in Istanbul

ISTANBUL - Anadolu Agency

Minister Yıldırım (L) says Turkey aims to form the convergence of the Silk Road. DHA photo

The 11th Transportation, Maritime Affairs and Communications Forum 2013 kicked off on Sept. 5 in Istanbul, with the attendance of the President Abdullah Gül.

The forum, organized with the theme “efficient transport and fast communication for all,” will specify Turkey’s goals and policies on transportation, maritime and communications for 2023 and 2035. 

Gül said that as Turkey enhanced its transportation opportunities, the economy had grown and citizens felt more confident, thus making Turkey a more open state and society.

“In today’s world, where living and developing in a geography affects others with a domino effect, Turkey needs to plan its transportation and communications strategy within its global dimensions,” Gül said.

The president said productivity formed by communications, informatics and innovation had become the main locomotive of both economic and human growth, and that greater money should be invested in information, information production, and research and development.

Stating that regional, economic and political integration projects like the European Union had changed the destiny of continents, Gül emphasized that Turkey had been situated throughout history at the intersection point of continents, civilizations and ancient transportation corridors, leading the country to redefine its geostrategic position.

Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Minister Binali Yıldırım said they aimed to form the convergence of the Silk Road by completing the Marmaray, a rail transport project in Istanbul consisting an undersea rail tunnel under the Bosphorus.