A proposed trade route connecting India and Europe, via the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel, was the topic of a conference held in Budapest this month.
The May 12-13 conference, “Realizing the Vision of IMEC: Building Bridges of Connectivity,” was sponsored by the Danube Institute, a Budapest-based conservative group; and the Sino-Israel Global Network and Academic Leadership (SIGNAL Group), an Israeli policy think tank.
It explored the strategic rationale behind the proposed India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) as a rival to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the opportunities it offers, and the challenges to effectively develop it.
Carice Witte, founder and executive director of SIGNAL Group, told the conference, “Success will require good communication, cooperation, discipline, and diplomacy,” the Hungarian Conservative magazine reported.
The proposed route, still in the early planning stages, covers sea, rail and road networks. From ports such as Mumbai, goods would travel to the UAE by sea, and then be transported by a rail link connecting the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel, and again by sea to ports in Europe such as Piraeus and Trieste.
The journey from Mumbai to Piraeus is estimated to take 10 or 11 days, saving five or six days compared to traditional routes.
Attendees from Israel, Greece, Saudi Arabia, India, Japan, Hungary, Japan and the United States, among others, spoke at the conference.
Carla Sands, former U.S. ambassador to Denmark, said, “IMEC is the child of the Abraham Accords—a legacy of Trump’s diplomacy.”
She noted that U.S. interest in the project will depend on well-defined economic opportunities, the Hungarian Conservative reported.
Although IMEC is generally seen as a challenge to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, Thanos Dokos, national security adviser to Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said that IMEC should not seek to rival China, but rather promote global trade coexistence.
Hungary’s State Secretary for Security Policy and Energy Security Péter Sztáray said, “Hungary supports IMEC as a way to promote global stability and create strategic alternatives.”
Tomohiko Taniguchi, former adviser to late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, said that BRI served solely Chinese national interests, whereas IMEC is a “project of the future.”
Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbot was still more direct, warning against dependence on China for critical supply chains, a vulnerability IMEC would reduce.
