With the the Belt and Road Initiative entering a new stage of high-quality development, Kunming and Urumqi, two strategic hubs in western China, are reshaping the international economic and trade pattern with an unprecedented opening attitude. On one hand, it is the core of the Pan Asian Railway network that radiates Southeast Asia, and on the other hand, it is the fulcrum of the new Silk Road corridor that connects Central Asia and West Asia. With significant breakthroughs in cross-border railways, these two cities have risen from traditional border towns to international gateways under the dual circulation strategy.

Railway breakthrough: 2025 becomes a crucial year, with the four major channels advancing simultaneously

2025 will become a landmark timeline for China's cross-border railway construction. To the south, the second phase of the China Thailand high-speed railway has been approved by the Thai government and is planned to start construction in 2025. After completion, passengers can take the high-speed railway directly from Kunming to Bangkok; The Old Street Hanoi Haiphong section of the Sino Vietnamese cross-border railway has been approved by the Vietnamese parliament and is planned to start construction by the end of the year. To the west, the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway has officially launched the preliminary project bidding, and the Kyrgyzstan section is about to start construction; The Chinese section of the China Myanmar Railway is nearing completion, and the Muse Mandalay section has been listed as a priority construction project by the Myanmar side. These international railway projects, which have been delayed for many years, have finally made substantial progress.

Southeast Asian direction: Kunming hub level comprehensively upgraded

Kunming, as a core node of the Pan Asian Railway network, is constructing a railway corridor pattern of "eight provinces and five exits". After the opening of the China Laos Railway, the demonstration effect is significant: the transportation cost in Laos is reduced by 20% -40%, and the freight cost of China Laos Thailand is reduced by 30% -50%. In 2024, the line has sent a total of 19.11 million passengers and 19.64 million tons of goods, a year-on-year increase of over 10%. After the completion of the China Thailand Railway in 2031, Kunming will achieve deep interconnection with the ASEAN economic artery.

ASEAN market: Global growth pole unleashes enormous potential

ASEAN has a population of 680 million and its GDP has increased from $2.5 trillion in 2015 to $3.8 trillion in 2023. If maintained at an annual growth rate of 4% -5%, it is expected to become the fourth largest economy in the world by 2030. The middle class is rapidly expanding, and it is expected that the consumption scale will exceed 4 trillion US dollars by 2030. In 2023, China's investment in ASEAN reached 25.12 billion US dollars, a year-on-year increase of 34.7%, highlighting the potential for regional cooperation.

Central Asia Corridor: Upgrading the Advantages of Urumqi Hub

The China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway will open a new channel along the the Belt and Road South Line, which will shorten the transportation distance by 1000 kilometers compared with the North Line. Urumqi is strengthening its functions as a land port national logistics hub and enhancing the radiation level of the China Europe freight train assembly center. By creating a three in one transportation system of "iron, air, and public", Tianshan International Airport has connected more than 100 domestic and foreign cities, covering over 70% of international routes in Central and Western Asia and Eastern Europe.

Logistics Revolution: Time Breakthrough and Restructuring of Global Supply Chain

Cross border railway is creating a new logistics record: China Laos railway+China Europe regular train has reduced the time for Laos and Thailand goods to Europe to less than 15 days, 35 days shorter than traditional sea transportation. Urumqi is actively exploring the new model of "China Europe freight train+cross-border e-commerce", and Kunming International Land Port is accelerating the construction of an all factor smart land port. By 2031, the two major hubs will fundamentally improve the efficiency of the Asia Europe supply chain through multimodal transport and mutual recognition of standards.

In the next six years, with the completion of the Kunming Bangkok high-speed railway and the full operation of the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan railway, the two hubs in western China will truly achieve the strategic goal of covering the whole country, Central Asia and West Asia in five hours and reaching Europe in eight hours, providing solid support for the joint construction of the the Belt and Road. Editor/Xu Shengpeng