During President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Kyrgyzstan, he and host President Saydr Japarov spoke highly at their Aug. 31 meeting in Bishkek about the ongoing rail construction project to finish the link that will complete the shortest rail connection from China to Central Asia, through Kyrgyzstan into Uzbekistan, which connection then continues to Iran, Southwest Asia and Africa.
The final 360 miles of rail inside Kyrgyzstan will complete what Japarov foresees as “the Steel Silk Road,” he praised as the, “high-quality China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway,” which is “is a major transportation artery that carries the regions’ hopes for development,” as reported by Xinhua. The leaders issued a joint declaration on development, committing to finish the rail construction by 2031.
Trains from China through this corridor to Central Asia and beyond have been running, but rail freight has had to be transferred to roadway mode across Kyrgyzstan, then re-loaded back onto rail to go into Uzbekistan. For example, northern Afghanistan has received rail cargo and humanitarian aid direct from China along this route. The current intermodal rail-to-road-to rail transfer will end once China and Kyrgyzstan finish building the railway through-line across the mountain nation.
In covering the significance of this collaborative rail project, Xinhua quoted many experts on Eurasia. Li Lifan, at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences said, “The railway is more than just a transit line. It is a strategic lever reshaping the regional landscape.”
Kyrgyzstan seeks to play an active economic and diplomatic role. At the United Nations in New York earlier this year, Kyrgyzstan was elected to serve a rotational term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2027-2028, receiving more votes than did the Philippines.
