Syria? Closed to railway traffic due to political tension in that area..

Iraq? There is only one connection, transpassing Syria, so is closed too..

Iran? End of discounts and new increases in rates, delays in Van Lake passage, embargo of EU.. Everything is harder now.. Honestly, Iran is not encouraging the railway either..

This is the dark side of the moon..

However, the last step of TCDD may be the beginning of old happy days. Last increase in rates to Iran has taken back. That means 10% decrease for the Turkish part of railway freight. The hard decline of traffic from Turkey to Iran in last 2 years may turn around.

Another good news for Iran traffic will be the start of ferry service. Transit loads to Iran from Europe had been shifting to truck since disconnection. But everybody knows that trucks have to be paid for almost roundtrip. Despite the embargo, there’s a considerable demand from Europe to Iran, and Iran seems to be the first country helping Turkey for becoming also the railway hub between West and East as a part of 2023 strategy.

Of course, without Iraq, nobody will talk about the rise..