Abdul Razak Dawood in a tweet on Tuesday said "we are glad to note that Istanbul-Tehran-Islamabad (ITI) Freight Train will resume operations from March 4, 2021 after nine years".
He said it will complete the one-side trip in 12-days, with the capacity to move 750 MT of goods. “This is a testament of friendship between the three countries," he added.
The minister went on to say it will go a long way in facilitating the movement of goods between Pakistan, Iran, and Turkey. “I congratulate Senator Azam Swati (Pakistan Railway Minister) for making this possible," said Abdul Razak Dawood.
He said that "I call on our exporters to take benefit of this alternative route and mode of transport and contact Ministry of Commerce for any facilitation".
A senior Pakistani Ministry of Railways official told Dawn English-language newspaper yesterday that the train was ready to resume its operations from Turkey to Islamabad, Pakistan via Zahedan on March 4.
Minister for Railways Azam Khan Swati told Dawn newspaper that he would receive the train on March 16.
Referring to the recent agreement between Iran, Pakistan, and Turkey as founding members of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) to resume the ECO container train this year, news sources say the project would facilitate trade and regional connections between the three countries.
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