Advertisement

China announces land link with Taliban-controlled Afghanistan

  • State media heralded the departure of a cargo from Lanzhou, a key transport hub, but analysts said its main importance is the symbolism
  • Freight will pass through Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, two countries where China is hoping to build a rail link

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
8
A shipment bound for Afghanistan left Lanzhou on Wednesday. Photo: Xinhua
China has announced a new land link with Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
Advertisement

The 3,125km (1,940 miles) route uses both railways and roads and passes through Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan as well.

One of the main businesses involved in the route said it hopes to normalise express links between the two countries, although analysts have said the main significance is symbolic rather than practical because air and sea links are still more important.

The route starts with a railway line between Lanzhou, a major road transport hub in the northwestern province of Gansu, to Kashgar in Xinjiang on the border with Kyrgzstan.

The route then continues by road to Kyrgyzstan, travelling to the border with Uzbekistan, where it switches back to rail until it reaches the Afghan border town of Hairatan.

The first train to leave Lanzhou was carrying US$1.5 million of freight, including car parts, furniture, machinery and equipment from Gansu province and other places, according to state news agency Xinhua.

Advertisement