| President Mohammad Khatami, speaks in Mashahad, during Mashhad-Bafq Railway Inauguration |
Iranian state news media reported that President Mohammad Khatami Tuesday inaugurated the track that runs from the central town of Bafq to the city of Mashhad in the northeast of the country.
The new link completes a line that runs from the Persian Gulf port of Bandar Abbas to Iran's northeast border, where it connects to the railway of Turkmenistan.
The new line is expected to shorten the travel time between central Asia and the Gulf by four to six days.
Some information for this report provided by Reuters.