Xi'an, the capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has handled over 5,000 freight trains bound for Central Asia and Europe in the first 10 months of 2025, data from China State Railway Group Co. showed on Monday.
From January to October, Xi'an saw 5,063 freight train departures, up 16.3 percent year on year.
It marked a same-period record in the number of freight train departures from Xi'an, since the city launched the first China-Europe freight rail service in 2013 as a key part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Of the total departures, 3,917 trains were bound for Europe and 1,146 for Central Asia. The cumulative freight volume reached 5.564 million tonnes, up 12.9 percent year on year, while 505,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers were delivered, marking an increase of 10.5 percent compared with the same period last year.
Xi'an sees over 5,000 Europe-, Central Asia-bound freight trains in Jan-Oct
As U.S. and Israeli military actions against Iran continue, their repercussions are increasingly being felt across Europe, Spanish residents and politicians are urging a united European to call for peace and solve the disputes through diplomatic means.
In Spain, the ongoing conflict has led to a sharp rise in the prices of goods and fuel in Madrid, the capital. People's voices are growing louder in their appeal for European nations to stand together against war and to resolve international disputes through dialogue and negotiation rather than military force.
"The U.S. has launched a war whose legitimacy is in question. The U.S. government then sought help from its allies with military bases, but the Spanish government refused this request. In response, the U.S. is considering trade restrictions against Spain, and possibly more measures. All of this is affecting local prices," said Nicolas, a Madrid resident.
Spanish officials warn that U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran are undermining international consensus and impacting the daily lives of people around the world. They urge European nations to stand with Spain in firmly opposing conflict and war, and to resolve disputes through diplomacy and negotiation.
"This conflict has indeed affected the way of life for us Spaniards. Although our military bases will not be used for attacks, food and energy prices keep rising. This means, whether we like it or not, we are directly or indirectly involved in this war, just like other parts of the world. That's why we need to show solidarity. We fully support the anti-war stance taken by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and government from the very beginning, and strongly recommend that this position be more strongly reflected at the European level," said Jose Luis Centella, chairman of the Communist Party of Spain.
Spain urges Europe to unite for peace amid US-Israel strikes on Iran
