Less reliance on sea routes: Iran begins building a railway to China

Iran has begun implementing a major infrastructure project: the construction of a cross-border railway line. The railway, which runs 657 km from Khaf (Iran) to Herat (Afghanistan) to Mazar-i-Sharif (Afghanistan) to Kashi (China).

The work will be carried out by Iranian companies, and funding will be provided by Afghanistan's mineral resources.

This section will become a key part of the Five Nations strategic corridor, which will eventually provide Iran with a direct rail link to China without the need to change the track gauge.

The new highway will significantly reduce the time and cost of freight delivery between East Asia, Iran, and Europe. The project is being actively promoted under agreements reached between Iran, Afghanistan, and Turkey. It will allow Tehran to significantly strengthen its role as a transit hub and reduce its dependence on maritime routes.

The corridor's completion is seen as a significant geoeconomic step, opening up new opportunities for trade and logistics in the region. Following the completion of the Herat-Mazar-i-Sharif section, construction is expected to continue toward the Wakhan Corridor to connect to the Chinese railway network.

In addition to the three countries mentioned, the new railway must pass through Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Tehran has finally solidified its commitment to this large-scale project after the American blockade of its ports. China is no less interested in this. However, there are security concerns, primarily on Afghan soil.

Comments

[lubesky]

I'm very curious, is the unrest in Herat by any chance connected to control of the route in the future?

[knn54]

Less dependence on sea routes:
more dependence on China.

[Anarchist]

Iran is already dependent on China. China invests heavily in the Persians. Especially when it's at odds with the "civilized" West, it has to rely on other markets. But it's still, one way or another, diversification...

[credo]

I'm very curious, is the unrest in Herat by any chance connected to control of the route in the future?

Apparently, the Persians want to tie the Tajiks and Kyrgyz to this railway so that they can reach an agreement with their fellow tribesmen in Afghanistan, so that they can find common ground with the central government in Kabul and avoid muddying the waters.
A separate issue is the Taliban, who need to be somehow calmed down and linked with Pakistan by a peace treaty along the demarcation line drawn by the treacherous Brits.

[Irek]

The Americans will definitely interfere in this process and make a mess as always.

[YOU]

Yes, it's like a star-spangled banner on a Fabergé slab. And then there are the new trade routes to Asia, which they don't particularly enjoy either.

[credo]

The Americans will definitely interfere in this process and make a mess as always.

And not only the US, but also Israel and England will want to participate. They "love" Iran to the point of colic.

[Mini Mokik]

In terms of military operations, railway lines are restored very quickly, unlike naval blockades.

[Roman Efremov]

I didn't know Iran was so close to China!!!🥱
But building a road through Afghanistan isn't exactly flat steppe! It might be cheaper to go through Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan, even though it's three times longer!

[Brturin]

Quote: Roman Efremov

It wasn't cheaper to go through Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan

here

and funding will be provided from Afghanistan's mineral resources

, and then what...
It's easier in the steppe, but the TAPI gas pipeline goes through the Afghans, and then there are energy projects

[Roman Efremov]

I just looked at Yandex maps – just Khaf-Herat-Mazar-i-Sharif is over 700 km. IN A STRAIGHT LINE!!! In reality, it's twice as long.
Kashi in China is in the very northwest, and it's almost 1500 km from Mazar-i-Sharif!!! Yandex doesn't show me any other Kashi in China.
Kashgar is about 800 km from Mazar-i-Sharif, and there's a railway there (though it's not connected to the main Chinese railway network). The article definitely contains some kind of nonsense; I was immediately suspicious.

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

We've become accustomed to the impotence and inability to implement any large-scale projects. 700 km, 800 km, 1500 km—these aren't distances that can be considered impossible. The Trans-Siberian Railway was built from 1891 to 1916. Its length was approximately 7 kilometers. Other sources estimate the length to be over 9 kilometers.

[Kmet]

The new highway will significantly reduce the time and cost of cargo delivery between East Asia, Iran and Europe.

Excellent. Now the Strait of Hormuz can be held back like a faucet, limiting supplies to our "dear neighbors," while Iran can secure an overland route for oil transfers. True, the UAE is also considering building its own railway through Israel. It will be interesting to see the Persian Gulf lose its strategic importance altogether.

[Kerensky]

Iran will be able to provide an overland route for oil transfer.

You can also transport LNG in lighters... How much oil does a tanker hold? Convert that to rail tankers.

[Kmet]

Yes, there was that joke about sparkling water and gas in lighters, but you can't pour oil into a lighter, and lighting it is difficult. However, it's better than nothing. Iran isn't just focused on rail transport; they've also started working on ports on the Caspian Sea. They'll move the loading terminals to the Caspian and start supplying oil. And then they'll even figure out how to build a pipeline. They'll de-essentialize supply dependencies in any case. However, China is also seriously considering energy diversification and gradually reducing its dependence on fossil fuels. Nuclear power plants and, oddly enough, green energy are priorities.

[Kerensky]

The priority is nuclear power plants and, oddly enough, green energy.

Can you make a tire out of this? Plastic, fertilizer... and sneakers, finally!

[Kmet]

Tires are fine. Sneakers, plastic, and many other things are fine, too. It all depends on how China's economy can and will transform itself after it abandons fossil fuels (assuming, of course, that happens).
At the current moment, these indicators look approximately like this:
1) Plastics and plasticizers.
World share: China produces 33% of the world's plastic products and accounts for 20% of global exports.
Export volume: In 2023, plastic product exports amounted to $100,8 billion.
2) Tires.
World share: China produces almost half of all tires in the world, and its share of global exports reaches 25%.
Export volume: 6,16 billion tires were exported in 2023.
If China decides it no longer needs all of this in the same volumes, or distributes this production to other countries to reduce the burden on its own economy, thereby diversifying its direct dependencies on suppliers (by distributing and diluting them in the overall supply chain to other countries), which would also mitigate its dependence on external sanctions, then the burden on supplies to China itself and its distribution would be entirely different. The economy would then be freed from this direct impact, and cash flows would not diminish. What China will ultimately do is unknown. We'll see.
Let Iran build a railway and continue modernizing the Caspian port infrastructure—it's doing the right thing, as transportation of the nation's main economic product should be developed to the maximum, and dependence on external factors minimized.

[Kerensky]

abandonment of natural resources, used as fuel

And the fuel isn't important here. All plastics and rubber are based on hydrocarbons (carbon and hydrogen), which are extracted from coal, oil, and gas. And without these raw materials, you can't make a condom these days.

[Kmet]

Condoms are a small thing. Butter is a big deal.

[acetophenone]

Look how smart the people are getting, how they've been hit hard in the ass! Where does it all come from?
It's a pity that nothing can get through to our people... They can only continue to drag on:

- What's wrong, guys? We were sitting there just fine...

[mitrich]

The word "ours," "ours," in relation to this context, should have been written in quotation marks a long time ago.
For the words of the vampire Brzezinski turned out to be one hundred percent true.

[olboop]

We are talking about the railway Khaf (Iran) - Herat (Afghanistan) - Mazar-i-Sharif (Afghanistan) - Kashi (China) with a length of 657 km.

What 675 km? Just from Herat to Mazar-i-Sharif is 511 km in a straight line on the map! And from Mazar-i-Sharif to Kashi, China, it's almost 1500 – also in a straight line. And then you have to go around (or through?) the Pamirs and the western Tien Shan. The scale of the construction project, indeed.

[Brturin]

It probably means that the existing railway network will be used, and this figure of 657 missing sections (In 2008, Iran completed the Khaf (Iran) - Herat (Afghanistan) railway) plus the entire track must be brought to a uniform size

[Roman Efremov]

I also believed it at first, although I had my doubts, then I measured the distances on Yandex Maps……..

[Lynx2000]

Quote: credo

Apparently, the Persians want to tie the Tajiks and Kyrgyz to this railway so that they can reach an agreement with their fellow tribesmen in Afghanistan, so that they can find common ground with the central government in Kabul and avoid muddying the waters.
A separate issue is the Taliban, who need to be somehow calmed down and linked with Pakistan by a peace treaty along the demarcation line drawn by the treacherous Brits.

Although Iranians (Persians) will not understand Pashtuns (Afghanis), the latter are an Iranian-speaking people, and the Taliban are not only Pashtuns, but also Tajiks, and many understand their language (Dari), Baloch (an Iranian-speaking people), Uzbeks are also present in the Taliban.
China has plenty of its own "separatists" - the Uyghurs.
I've been to Urumqi...

[gsev]

Quote: Lynx2000

Although Iranians (Persians) will not understand Pashtuns (Afghanis)

Afghanistan is a bilingual country. Almost all Pashtun intellectuals also speak Dari, a variety of Farsi. Farsi is the language of administration, culture, the press, and technology in Afghanistan. Pashtun is predominantly spoken only in the armed forces.

[kventinasd]

We are talking about the railway Khaf (Iran) - Herat (Afghanistan) - Mazar-i-Sharif (Afghanistan) - Kashi (China) with a length of 657 km.

It's far from 657 km, it's much more. And that's without taking into account the terrain.

[gsev]

Quote: kventinasd

It's far from 657 km, it's much more. And that's without taking into account the terrain.

The railway from Hairatan to Mazar-i-Sharif has also been built. The railway from Herat to Mazar-i-Sharif remains to be built. Apparently, this project will also include a line from Mazar-i-Sharif to Kabul and possibly even to Jalalabad and Pakistan.

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

The line from Mazar-i-Sharif to Kabul, Jalalabad, and Pakistan isn't feasible in this lifetime. It's like traveling through another planet populated by bandits. This would only happen if the global geopolitical situation changes dramatically. For example, if London ceases to be Christian and becomes completely Muslim.

[gsev]

Quote: Sergey Alexandrovich

The line from Mazar-i-Sharif to Kabul and Jalalabad and Pakistan is not in this life.

Under the Taliban, if the Chinese are in charge of the technical side, this is entirely feasible. A railway would connect Iran and Tajikistan fairly quickly. Building a railway to Kabul makes no sense yet. Moreover, the main obstacles are the ambitions of Pakistani intelligence officers and politicians who consider Pashtuns obligated to serve the Punjabis.

[log]

Transporting oil from the Middle East by rail is awesome! The only thing cooler would be flying to Argentina in hot air balloons.

[gsev]

Quote: troza

Transporting oil from the Middle East by rail is cool!

China is interested in transporting goods to China. Coal from Kuzbass is shipped to ports on the Pacific Ocean and from there by sea to Shanghai, and this works. Oil is more expensive than coal. China has built pipelines from Russia, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. Iran could also be connected to them.

[Sergey Aleksandrovich]

Barrels used to be rolled regularly along the railway. And there were plenty.

[Takeshi Kitano]

"At the same time, there are security issues, primarily on Afghan territory." They have order now. They are also working on strategic economic projects, specifically digging a water canal. The disorder there arises due to the interference of other states in their affairs.