Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey have struck a deal to launch regular freight rail service on the Islamabad-Tehran-Istanbul route (ITI corridor). While the agreement is largely symbolic for now, its practical potential remains significant.
At a two-day Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) summit in Islamabad, Iran's, Pakistan's, and Turkey's railways agreed to operate at least one monthly freight train along the ITI corridor, Iranian Railways told 1520International.
"As Iran Railways pursues its strategic goal of expanding East-West and North-South transit, partnering with Turkey and Pakistan on the ITI corridor could solidify Iran's position as the railway link between Central Asia and Europe while expanding our freight capabilities. This agreement may become one of the key topics when President Mahmoud Pezeshkian meets with Islamic leaders during the upcoming UN General Assembly session," the company stated.
Alexander Karavaev, an expert at the Caspian Institute for Strategic Studies, points out that Islamabad and Ankara have grown closer over the past two years, looking to boost bilateral trade from $1.4 billion to $5 billion. Turkish companies are making aggressive moves into Pakistan, exploring oil and gas opportunities. Iran serves as the transit facilitator in this partnership.
"Politically, this represents an anti-Israeli group project; economically, it's Turkey's bid to expand its regional footprint," the CISS expert observes.
While the Iran-Pakistan-Turkey agreement to run at least one monthly freight train marks progress in regional connectivity, it's hardly groundbreaking, says Eldaniz Guseinov, a researcher at Istanbul's Ibn Khaldun University's Heydar Aliyev Center for Eurasian Studies.
The ITI corridor has been around for years, the analyst notes. Trial runs started in 2009, but service remained sporadic and faced repeated shutdowns.
"The most recent symbolic shipment took place in December 2021, but achieving consistent operations proved impossible due to infrastructure gaps and red tape. What makes this September 2025 agreement significant isn't its novelty—it's the commitment to regular service and tackling longstanding issues like tariff mismatches, customs hurdles, and technical problems where different rail systems meet," Guseinov explains.
On paper, the corridor could slash cargo transit times between South Asia and Europe to 10-15 days—far quicker than shipping by sea. But the agreement provides for just one train monthly. Compare that to other Eurasian land routes like the Middle Corridor through Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Georgia, which already see hundreds of trains yearly. The ITI also grapples with major infrastructure headaches, from incompatible rail gauges at the Iran-Pakistan border to deteriorating track conditions on Pakistan's Quetta-Taftan stretch.
Even so, Guseinov sees strategic value in the initiative. Iran gains transit fees and reinforces its role as a regional transport gateway; Pakistan gets better access to European markets without relying on congested sea lanes; Turkey further cements its position bridging Asia and Europe. If the partners can ramp up frequency and attract private shippers in the future, the ITI could become an additional option alongside existing Eurasian routes".
"View this as incremental progress, not a game-changer. Its real importance lies in showing that Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey are serious about deeper transport ties. Whether the corridor thrives will depend on transitioning from symbolic regularity to substantial, commercially viable operations," Guseinov concludes.
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