Xi'an launches new China-Europe freight train on trans-Caspian route

A China-Europe freight train on Friday departed China's northwestern city of Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, starting its journey crossing the Caspian Sea and the Black sea, marking the country's latest effort to strengthen cooperation and connection with central Asian and European countries.

Starting from the Xi'an International Port and carrying goods like books, excavators, and solar photovoltaic products, the freight train will travel over 10,000 kilometers, passing through countries including Kazakhstan, Slovakia, and Czech Republic before reaching the German city of Mannheim.

The train marks the latest effort of Xi'an to launch more cross-Caspian freight trains. Over the pass two years, the city has operated 150 freight trains, transporting 137,000 tonnes of goods.

Last year, China announced it will participate in the construction of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor as part of the country's effort to promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

The Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor starts from China, runs through Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia and further to Türkiye and European countries.

The corridor stands for a prime example of the practical cooperation between China and the Central Asian countries. It also helps to enhance the reliability of the trade between China and Europe, cut the transport time by half, and effectively lower the logistics costs.

By 2030, the annual cargo throughput of the corridor will reach 10 million to 11 million tonnes, according to a World Bank forecast.

Li Hongzhong, vice chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, met with the European Parliament's delegation for relations with China led by chair Engin Eroglu in Beijing on Wednesday.

Li, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China is willing to work with the European Union (EU) to strengthen communication, enhance mutual trust, deepen cooperation, and pursue mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

He said China stands ready to join hands with the EU to address global challenges, promote exchanges and cooperation among legislative bodies, effectively utilize communication mechanisms, and advance the sound and stable development of China-EU relations.

Eroglu said the EU stands ready to work with China to contribute to the development of EU-China relations.