G20 Summit 2023: United States President Joe Biden on Saturday emphasized the importance of the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor and said that the United States will work with its partners to invest in building sustainable, resilient infrastructure, and making quality infrastructure investments. He was addressing the Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment (PGII) and India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor programme at Bharat Mandapam.
Biden said "This is a real big deal. I want to thank PM. One Earth, One Family, One Future that's the focus of this G 20 Summit. And in many ways, it's also the focus of this partnership that we're talking about today."
He added, "Building sustainable, resilient infrastructure, making quality infrastructure investments and creating a better future... Last year, we came together as one to commit to this vision. And this afternoon I want to highlight the key ways in which the United States and our partners are working to make this a reality. Economic corridor. You're going to hear that phrase more than once, I expect, over the next decade. As we work to address infrastructure gaps across low-middle-income countries, we need to maximize the impact of our investments."
The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor will consist of two separate corridors, the East corridor connecting India to West Asia/Middle East and the Northern corridor connecting West Asia/Middle East to Europe.
It will include a rail line, which upon completion, will provide a reliable and cost-effective cross-border ship-to-rail transit network to supplement the existing multi-modal transport routes enhancing transhipment of goods and services between South East Asia through India to West Asia/Middle East Europe.
Connectivity with countries of the region remains a key priority for India and is deeply rooted in Indian civilizational history. India has always stood to invest, cooperate and build connectivity as part of "One Earth, One Family, One Future".
It is also important to ensure that connectivity initiatives are consultative, transparent and participatory with respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries. Principles of financial responsibility and economic viability must be followed to avoid the creation of unsustainable debt burdens to recipients and conforming to ecological and environmental standards.
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