US blockade pressing Iran: Giant truck queues at border

The US naval blockade of Iranian ports is forcing Tehran to divert an ever-growing share of its trade to land border crossings, with the number of trucks waiting at the Gurbulak crossing opposite Turkey jumping from about 200 to about 1,200, and queues stretching for kilometers.

According to AP reporting, the US naval blockade is forcing Tehran to divert an ever-growing share of its trade from sea routes to land border crossings, with hundreds of trucks stretching in recent days along roads leading from the Turkish border area into Iran. At the Gurbulak crossing in eastern Turkey, the largest border crossing between the two countries, the number of trucks waiting has jumped from about 200 in routine to about 1,200, and queues stretch for kilometers. Wait times, which drivers said previously stood at just a few days at most, have increased significantly since the war began.

A 55-year-old Iranian truck driver who waited four days to bring a rubber shipment into Iran told the news agency: 'I've been traveling through this border crossing for 15 years, and I've never had to wait this long'. According to him, the queue he waited in stretched seven kilometers. Even in Tehran they acknowledge the unusual congestion: Amir Roshanbekhsh Gonbari, a senior official in a government body promoting Iranian trade, confirmed the sharp jump in the number of trucks at the crossing, and said that neighboring countries lack the infrastructure capable of accommodating such a number of vehicles.

The unusual congestion comes as Iran tries to adapt to the US blockade of its ports, which limits the ability to import goods and export oil and gas, a central source of income for Iran's economy. Iranian truck drivers are grappling with growing frustration, rising fuel prices, increases in spare parts prices and a decline in the number of monthly trips: one driver said he previously made two trips a month and now manages only one, and other drivers claimed that on the Iranian side wait times could reach 12 to 25 days.

It was also reported that Iran and Turkey are now trying to increase the capacity of the crossings: on the Turkish side lanes and screening posts have been added, and at the border with Pakistan the countries are planning to operate the crossings 24 hours a day and even open a new crossing. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States this week of trying to apply maximum economic pressure on his country, and in Tehran they continue to argue that American pressure will not bring a change in their position in negotiations with Washington.