On December 16, 2025, a historic loan agreement was officially signed in the presence of Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Prime Minister Bakt Torobaev. China Development Bank and Export Import Bank of China will provide a preferential loan of 2.3 billion US dollars with a term of up to 35 years for the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan railway project, with a total investment of approximately 4.7 billion US dollars. This not only marks the complete elimination of core financing obstacles for this strategic project that spans across three countries, but also symbolizes that the ancient Silk Road, in the form of modern railways, is crossing the steep cliffs of the Pamir Plateau and injecting new momentum into regional development.

Cracking the Engineering and Financing Password of the Most Difficult Railway

The China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway is known as one of the most technically challenging railway projects in Central Asia, with challenges far beyond ordinary. On the 304 kilometer route within Kyrgyzstan, the bridge to tunnel ratio is as high as 39%, which means that nearly 40% of the journey requires digging tunnels in the mountains and building bridges on deep valleys. This is a difficult conquest of natural geography.

However, what is more complex than conquering natural risks is cracking the financing risks of the project. Fundraising is the key to determining the survival of such a massive multinational project. After signing the contract, Zhou Xin, the general manager of the project joint company, said, "This loan is not only capital, but also confidence. It ensures the smooth flow of the project's blood, allowing us to devote ourselves wholeheartedly to technological breakthroughs." The 35 year long term reflects the firm confidence of Chinese financial institutions in the long-term benefits of the project and their profound consideration for supporting regional development. Vice Prime Minister Torobaev specifically pointed out that the successful completion of all financing arrangements by the project company before the deadline stipulated in the agreement itself proves the efficient and professional operational capabilities of the trilateral consortium, setting a benchmark for future broader international infrastructure cooperation.

How a Railway Reshaps Regional Economic Geography

When the Zhongjiwu Railway passes through mountains and valleys and is fully connected, it will bring far more than just the extension of steel tracks. It will directly construct an international logistics trunk line from Xinjiang, China, through Kyrgyzstan, directly to Uzbekistan, and radiating throughout Central Asia, West Asia, and Southern Europe. It is expected that this will significantly shorten the freight distance from China to the Middle East and Europe by about 900 kilometers, save 7 to 8 days in time, and significantly reduce transportation costs.

Its strategic value, as emphasized by the heads of state of the three countries at the project commencement ceremony at the end of 2024, is not simply a transportation project, but a regional connectivity project with significant strategic significance. It will activate the economic potential of the areas along the route and promote cooperation in multiple fields such as trade, energy, and tourism. A scholar who has studied Central Asia's economy for a long time analyzed that: "This railway is like a development axis inserted into the hinterland of Central Asia, which not only opens up the physical channel, but also will deeply integrate the regional industrial chain. The mineral resources and agricultural products of Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine will get access to the sea at a lower cost, and the markets of China and Europe will be more closely linked, so as to truly achieve a win-win situation." Key words: the Belt and Road project news, the Belt and Road news information

From signing financing agreements to mechanical construction, every step of the China Kyrgyzstan Uzbekistan Railway is transforming the grand blueprint into a realistic roadbed. It bears the common aspiration of the people of the three countries for development, and it is also a vivid practice of the spirit of consultation, joint construction and sharing under the the Belt and Road Initiative. When the first train roars through once impassable mountains in the future, it heralds the arrival of a new Central Asian era that is more connected, prosperous, and integrated.Editor/Cheng Liting