Kazakhstan, China and Russia have started building a joint transport hub. The hub will be built at the Selyatino station in Russia’s Moscow region. The hub is supposed to improve transport links between Russia and the Kazakh-Chinese terminal in Xi’an, China.

Earlier this year, the Russian firm Slavtrans signed a memorandum of understanding with Kazakh Railways and Xi’an Free Trade Port Construction and Operation that defined their common vision for the Selyatino transport hub.

The three parties stated that they were considering a joint investment in the hub in order to promote and deepen economic and trade cooperation between Russia, China and Kazakhstan.

Better logistical connections

Alongside the Selyatino hub, the parties agreed to develop linear transportation between the Kazakh-Chinese hub in Xi’an and Selyatino through Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan is a major transit country for Chinese rail freight heading west and has seen freight volumes grow in recent times. In 2023, Chinese-Russian transit volumes on the Kazakh rail network amounted to 3,8 million tonnes, up by 35 per cent from 2022.

According to Kazakh Railways, the hub will improve delivery times and contribute to medium-term and long-term container transportation planning.

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