The Berlin-Bagdad Railway was an all-rail route, in various stages of completion at the time of the First World War, to connect Berlin with Bagdad in the Ottoman Empire and eventually with Basra or another port on the Persian Gulf. As of the outbreak of the First World War, the terminus of the railway was at Nesibin, around 300 miles away from Bagdad. The railway had been primarily financed by German interests; Germany was interested in a route to the east through friendly territory, to extend its trade influence and to access the German colonies without having to access the British-controlled Suez Canal. This was of some concern to Britain, France, and Russia.
