The British authorities has introduced a mortgage to Turkey for a high-speed railway line.
The UK’s Export Finance division will mortgage Turkey $2.33 billion to construct the 503 kilometers (312 miles) of high-speed electrical railway connecting the capital Ankara to the coastal metropolis Izmir. The mortgage, meant to cut back carbon emissions, is structured by the British monetary providers agency Normal Chartered and the Swiss financial institution Credit score Suisse, UK Export Finance mentioned in a press launch.
Why it issues: The mortgage is the most recent instance of strengthening financial cooperation between Turkey and the UK. Turkey is the UK’s second-biggest export market, and the 2 international locations signed a free commerce settlement final December. Each international locations’ tensions with the European Union have made them considerably pure allies, Amberin Zaman wrote for Al-Monitor.
The EU sanctioned Turkey final yr attributable to its offshore drilling actions in waters claimed by Greece and Cyprus. The EU can also be vital of Turkey’s poor human rights file. The UK’s relationship with the EU, in the meantime, has been strained by Brexit.
Cooperation with Turkey has confronted some criticism in Europe, together with a boycott marketing campaign within the UK.
Turkey has a combined file on renewable vitality. The environmental watchdog Ember reported that Turkey’s use of wind and solar energy elevated in 2021, however coal utilization stays comparatively excessive.
What’s subsequent: The contracts for the development of the railway might be awarded to British and Turkish companies.
A UK Export Finance spokesman informed Al-Monitor that the railway is anticipated to be accomplished by 2025.
This text was up to date to incorporate feedback from the UK Export Finance workplace.