A freight train loaded with 1,080 tons of hot-dip galvanized steel coil departed from the Horgos comprehensive bonded area in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Saturday, marking the launch of a "road-rail" multimodal freight train route linking Horgos in Xinjiang with Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan.
The new route integrates two different modes of transport. After arriving in the Horgos comprehensive bonded area via road transport, the cargo will then be transferred to freight trains, exit through railway crossing points, and ultimately arrive in Uzbekistan.
The new freight train route will significantly reduce logistic transit time and further facilitate the trade and economic exchanges between China and countries in central Asia.
With the new route in service, over 300,000 tons of steel are expected to be shipped to Central Asian countries next year, including Uzbekistan.
Horgos in northwest Xinjiang launches first road-rail freight train route to Uzbekistan
Cheng Li-wun, chairwoman of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party, on Thursday warned against "needless contradictions and ambiguities" that could hinder Taiwan's progress, as she continued her visit to the mainland.
Cheng made the remarks when touring the sprawling, fully automated Yangshan Port in Shanghai, where she witnessed firsthand the achievements of the Chinese mainland's high-tech and industrial development.
She commended the mainland's industrial and technological advances as well as its low-carbon transformation.
"The service industry and traditional manufacturing sector of Taiwan are facing very serious bottlenecks. Opportunities for future development can be seen in how they transform, upgrade, and integrate with AI. Cross-strait reconciliation, dialogue, exchange, and cooperation can make the most beautiful flowers bloom even in the most unlikely places. Therefore, everyone's imagination, creativity, expertise, and enthusiasm are limitless. We shouldn't let needless contradictions and ambiguities limit the steps we could take and the development we could achieve," Cheng said.
Leading a KMT delegation, Cheng embarked her six-day visit to the mainland on Tuesday, marking the first time in a decade that a KMT chairperson has led a delegation to the mainland.
Shanghai was the second leg of Cheng's trip, after she and her delegation traveled to Nanjing, the provincial capital of Jiangsu in the east.
On delegation, the delegation visited the Shanghai headquarters of the food delivery giant Meituan, where they experienced drone-based delivery services that offered a glimpse into the mainland's rapidly developing smart economy.
On Thursday morning, Cheng and her delegation also toured the Shanghai Aircraft Design and Research Institute under the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, Ltd., manufacturer of domestically-developed aircraft including the C919 passenger jet.
The delegation departed Shanghai for Beijing on Thursday afternoon.
Needless contradictions should not limit Taiwan's potential: KMT chairwoman
