Need to have multiple routes under IMEC: French Special envoy

There need to be multiple routes under the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) according to Gérard Mestrallet, Special Envoy of the French President for the proposed route. Responding to queries from journalists on the impact of the ongoing Iran conflict, he said the focus is shifting towards resilient routes.

IMEC is a proposed of connecting India to the Gulf region. It further connects the Gulf region to Europe. The plan includes a railway and ship-rail transit network and road transport routes. This was announced in 2023 during India’s G20 presidency.

“There will be no zero-risk routes,” Mestrallet said, adding the Hormuz will “not be closed for eternity.”


According to Christophe Castaner, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Marseille Fos Port, the Iran war has redrawn supply chains. “The reality is that the consequences of the blockage of Hormuz demonstrate that the corridor that was yesterday is not valid today,” he told ET (through a translator) and added it is necessary to include Oman in the proposed network.

Responding to a query on when the routes under IMEC will be finalised, Mestrallet said, “It’s a project of the century.”

He said Oman, Egypt, Lebanon, Greece, and Cyprus have formally expressed interest in joining the mega-connectivity project. A ministerial-level meeting is expected later this year to evaluate expanding the corridor's geographical scope, which requires unanimous approval from the eight original signatories (India, the US, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, France, Germany, Italy, and the EU).