India—Near West—Europe Economic Corridor

India—Near West—Europe Economic Corridor

Announcement of India—Near West—Europe Economic Corridor in New Delhi
India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor Founder States And Location Map
Abbreviation	IMEC
Formation	9 September 2023 (2023-09-09)
Founder	India United States Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates European Union France Germany Italy
Purpose	Promote economic development and inter-regional connectivity
Location	India United Arab Emirates Saudi Arabia Jordan Israel European Union

The India—Near West—Europe Economic Corridor (भारत—निकट पश्चिम—यूरोप आर्थिक गलियारा ; IMEC) is a planned project that aims to improve economic development by strengthening connections and economic cooperation between Asia, the Middle East, and Europe. The corridor is a suggested route starting from India, going through the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and ending in Greece, to link the economies of these regions.

By the way, the original name of this project is the India—Middle East—Europe Economic Corridor, but the region that is the ‘Middle East’ for America and Europe is the ‘Near West’ from India’s perspective.

MOU signing date and place

On 09 September 2023, during the 2023 G20 summit held in New Delhi, the governments of India, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, Italy, and the European Union signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) project. This MoU aims to bring these countries together to work towards enhancing economic connectivity and integration between Asia, the Middle East, and Europe through this proposed corridor.

Information

The IMEC project was launched with the goal of strengthening transportation and communication links between Europe and Asia through rail and shipping networks. This initiative is viewed as a response to China's Belt and Road project. The Memorandum of Understanding signed by the participating countries has only outlined the potential geographical scope of the corridor, which will compete with the existing trade route through the Suez Canal.