1. Public Ministerial Session on the revival of the Silk Road
Istanbul, 16 May 2008
Martin Marmy
IRU Secretary General
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2. IRU – 60 years of Public-Private Partnership
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3. The feasibility of my dream is also proved by the recent US Chamber of Commerce’s study on the “land transport options between Europe and Asia” just published.
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4. Evolution of sea containers in ports in 1971
The container movements in the main ports started with the birth of world containerisation in the 1970s.
In the 1970s, it was a high number of ports linked with a high number of small container vessels.
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5. Evolution of sea containers in ports in 1980
In the 1980s, there were bigger vessels and only five ports were emerging – New York and Rotterdam were the biggest. Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Singapore were emerging.
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6. Evolution of sea containers in ports in 1990
In the 1990s the same trend continued.
The huge growth in Asian trade was and remains by the Pacific route to California.
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7. Evolution of sea containers in ports in 2000
In 2000, due to globalisation, the same trend continued at an even higher speed, mainly in the Asian ports.
The Asian ports, due to the lack of road infrastructure, exploded in volume.
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8. Evolution of sea containers in ports in 2006
The 2006 situation shows clearly why we have such massive congestion in all the main ports. The concentration of trade in a few ports generates not only bottlenecks, congestion and delays but above all additional costs!
This concentration of 80% of world trade in very few ports also creates a desertification of trade development in numerous regions that most require economic, social and political stability.
Our dream is to create, with road transport, peace and prosperity not only in a handful of ports, but in all the other regions.
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9. Interconnecting all the businesses along the reopened Silk Road
To CIS
To EU
To US
To US
To Mid East
By doing so, we are not only transporting goods from China to the States, but we are interconnecting all the businesses along the 8,000 mile Silk Road, thus realising new business opportunities.
In fact, by “looking West, young man”, you will also find your Middle Eastern markets, and we can interconnect all those businesses along that Middle East route, you can find your EU markets, and we can interconnect all the businesses along the EU route, you can find the CIS markets and we can interconnect all those businesses along the CIS route.
*****
A truck is not a boat, it is not a train, it is not a plane. Truck service is not concentrated in a handful of ports. A truck is always, everywhere, at the disposal of everyone. Thus, “looking West”, you could find fabulous new business opportunities.
Remember, a truck provides door-to-door service. A truck is therefore the best tool to unite people and to improve the distribution of wealth.
You might be looking at me and saying, “Martin, you’re crazy!”
But I say to you again, “wake up and smell the coffee, my dream has become reality.”
25% of world trade with neighbours sharing common border
50% of world trade between partners less than 3,000 km apart
Trade between Canadian provinces 22 times greater than trade between a Canadian province and US state of similar size and distance
Sea transport
Land transport
Key:
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10. Road transport tonnage distances in Europe
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11. UNESCAP-IRU Asian Highway Truck Caravan
Join us
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