First Direct Rail Shipment from China Arrives in Herat, Afghanistan

A 500-ton shipment of MDF boards from Beijing, China, has been transported directly by rail to Rosank station in Herat province without any unloading or reloading during the journey via Iran’s railway network. Iranian officials describe this as the first direct rail transit along this route.

Mostafa Rezaei, the director of the Iran-Afghanistan railway corridor, stated that the cargo was loaded onto the rail network in China, passed through Turkmenistan, entered Iran, and then reached Afghanistan via the Khaf-Herat railway line.

According to him, the use of combined maritime and rail transport along this route, compared to previous methods, has reduced both the time and cost of freight transportation, enhancing the corridor’s competitiveness.

Rezaei added that with the increase in transit cargo volume, the Khaf-Herat corridor can play a more significant role in connecting East Asia, Central Asia, and Afghanistan. The Khaf-Herat railway, linking Iran to Herat province, is considered a major transit project between the two countries.