When the first ray of sunshine in the morning falls on the railway tracks in Samarkand, a freight train loaded with electronic components and light industrial products slowly enters the "JSC Uzemiryoilkonteyner" logistics center. The staff dressed in workwear quickly walked towards the newly opened warehouse, scanning codes, verifying, and entering the warehouse. The entire process was completed in one go - this secure customs warehouse, jointly built by the Chinese enterprise Indra Bonded, is injecting new vitality into cross-border trade for this pearl city on the ancient Silk Road with efficient operation rhythm.

On December 27, 2025, the Samarkand region welcomed an important ceremony related to regional logistics upgrading. A group of government and enterprise representatives, including regional mayor A.M. Boboyev, Pasdargom district mayor Sh. Sh. Rakhmonov, and Ulugbek customs officer in charge of foreign economic activities A.M. Kurbanov, gathered at the logistics park to witness the official opening of the first Chinese funded safety customs warehouse. This milestone event not only marks a new stage of cooperation between China and Ukraine in the field of logistics infrastructure, but also signifies the strategic layout of Chinese enterprises in the Central Asian supply chain network, which has dropped a key chess piece.

On the map of cross-border trade in Central Asia, logistics efficiency has always been a core factor restricting industrial development. As a hub connecting the Eurasian continent, Uzbekistan has been vigorously promoting the upgrading and transformation of railways, highways, and storage facilities in recent years, attempting to undertake the growing regional trade demand with a more complete infrastructure network. The safe customs warehouse put into use this time is an important conclusion of this strategy.

This modern warehouse covering an area of 1500 square meters is equipped with an intelligent shelf storage system, which can simultaneously accommodate over 200 tons of goods turnover and achieve seamless connection between railway and road freight transportation. Unlike traditional warehousing facilities, it has the core function of "customs supervision+efficient distribution" and specializes in serving the distribution and distribution of imported goods in China. After the goods arrive, they can be directly inspected and cleared by customs in the warehouse without the need for secondary transportation, greatly shortening the cycle from warehousing to delivery. For local merchants in Central Asia, this means a reduction in procurement costs and an improvement in replenishment efficiency; For Chinese export enterprises, it has cleared the "last mile" bottleneck for goods entering the Central Asian market.

From a broader perspective, the opening of the Samarkand secure customs warehouse is a microcosm of Chinese enterprises' deep participation in the construction of infrastructure and trade systems in Central Asia. Under the framework of the "the Belt and Road" initiative, China and Uzbekistan continue to deepen cooperation in logistics, energy, manufacturing and other fields, and the implementation of this warehouse is transforming this cooperation into real supply chain competitiveness. It can not only improve the efficiency of import and export operations in the Samarkand region, but also radiate to surrounding cities such as Bukhara and Tashkent, promoting the integration of trade in Uzbekistan and even the Central Asian region to a new level.

With the operation of the warehouse, the camel bells of the ancient Silk Road are resonating with the sirens of modern logistics. The rise of a warehouse is driving a new pattern of cross-border trade in Central Asia, and the participation of Chinese enterprises is giving this ancient trade route unprecedented vitality in the new era.Editror/Bian Wenjun