Feasibility studies for Turkey-Iraq Ovaköy Border Gate to begin in Sept

Technical preparations for the Ovaköy Border Gate that will directly link Turkey to Baghdad via a 570-kilometer (354-mile) highway will begin following the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday. A delegation will conduct a detailed analysis in early September.

Last week, Qazim al-Akabi, the head of Iraq’s committee for border crossings, said that the two sides had agreed to dispatch technical experts to the border region sometime next month to conduct a feasibility study.

A large delegation of officials from the presidency, police, and public works and highways will visit the region in early September to analyze the area. This will be the first concrete step for Ovaköy.

The route of the highway connecting Turkey and Baghdad will be determined in a way that does not pass through the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) or Syria. Following the feasibility study and an agreement on the route, the Ovaköy Border Gate will be given the green light. Turkey will finance the necessary infrastructure investments.

The most critical matter regarding Ovaköy is security. During the feasibility studies, every effort will be exercised in order to ensure safety and security. Discussions will be held with the locals of the area. The planned border terminal would trigger an economic revival in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.

The Ovaköy Border Gate project is being delayed due to U.S. pressures on the Iraqi government although Ankara and Baghdad had reached a consensus regarding the matter.

The border gate, an alternative to the Ibrahim Khalil (Habur) border crossing located between Turkey and the Kurdish region in northern Iraq, will cut off the weapons supply of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terror group.

Washington, which is currently using the Ibrahim Khalil border crossing to supply weapons to terrorists from the PKK in Syria, is afraid of losing its terror card in the region as the border gate would prevent the U.S. from ensuring the free flow of terrorists.