A far-reaching plan to channel Europe-Asia trade through the Middle East is at risk of stalling before it even gets started.

The Israel-Hamas war has halted progress on what’s known as the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor – a project touted last year by Washington and key allies that envisages building new rail links across the Arabian peninsula. As Houthi attacks disrupt Red Sea shipping and turmoil spreads across the region, IMEC is effectively on ice. 

That’s a setback for US strategy because the plan served multiple purposes – to counter China’s Belt and Road infrastructure program, build influence in the so-called “Global South,” and speed up the hoped-for rapprochement between Israel and Saudi Arabia. 

This is a project that made Iran, China, Russia, even Turkey nervous,” said Romana Vlahutin, the former European Union special envoy for connectivity who’s now a distinguished fellow at the German Marshall Fund. “Maybe that is the best proof of its strategic importance.”

Asked whether the regional conflicts had stopped the project, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said in a briefing Tuesday that efforts to lay the groundwork are “ongoing.