Rail versus maritime

US sanctions? Rail gives China and Iran other options

Image: Bahnbilder.ch. © David Gubler

The overland route to get Chinese goods to Central Asia, the Caucasus or Europe is complicated. You can put your freight on trains, but there are border crossings, a variety of rail fees, track gauges and other challenges to be overcome. Despite that, China and Iran have grown rail transportation by 2.6 times in early 2025 and launched a new rail route recently. Why are they pursuing this?

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Author: Dennis van der Laan

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