Leaders from the United States, India, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates are expected to unveil a huge collaborative infrastructure plan to connect Gulf and Arab countries via a network of trains. The agreement would also connect the rail network to India via maritime channels from Gulf ports. Furthermore, if Saudi Arabia and Israel normalize their relations in the future, Israel may be included in the project.
According to an earlier story, the concept for the new effort arose during I2U2 meetings last year. This forum comprises the United States, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and India. Israel first proposed the concept during one of the sessions. The proposal was then expanded to include Saudi Arabia by the Biden administration.
The project is being seen as a counter to China's plans of expansion in West Asia under its Belt and Road Initiative
"The joint railway project is expected to be one of the key deliverables Biden wants to present during the G20 Summit in New Delhi this weekend," the report said.
If the four nations' discussions are completed over the weekend, their presidents will sign a memorandum of agreement specifying the project's parameters, according to the statement. It comes as the Biden administration attempts to normalize relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel ahead of the presidential elections in 2024. Leaders from all three nations are in India for the G20 Summit. Biden will meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi shortly after arriving in New Delhi.