Press Release.............................. UNESCAP News Services

7 November 2003
Press Release No: G/16/2003

Trans-Asian Railway: New, Exciting Phase Unveiled

Bangkok (UN Information Services) - The Trans-Asian Railway project will enter a "new exciting phase" for regional cooperation in North-East Asia with the railways of China and Mongolia agreeing to implement, on 8 November 2003, a pilot container block-train over a 1,700-km distance between the port of Tianjin, east of Beijing, and Ulaanbaatar.

This new run is being implemented under the Trans-Asian Railway project of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). The agreement was reached at a meeting in Ulaanbaatar in early October

"On 8th November, as the train is flagged on its way, the railways of China and Mongolia will take the first step towards the implementation of a grander vision to link Asia and Europe by land and one that may eventually change the face of transport in North-East Asia," says Mr. Barry Cable, Chief, UNESCAP's Transport and Tourism Division.

Under the project, UNESCAP is stepping up efforts to develop international rail freight corridors among the countries of North-East Asia and develop landbridge services that will link two of the world's most economically active regions, North-East Asia and the European Union.

The countries most directly interested in railway development in North-East Asia are China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, the Republic of Korea and the Russian Federation. Together, at the Ulaanbaatar meeting, these countries made a commitment to boost rail movement across borders and recognize the role of railways in regional economic development.

"This is particularly crucial for landlocked countries such as Kazakhstan and Mongolia, located several thousands kilometers away from the main ports, and for which railways provide access the world's markets in an era of increasing globalization," said Mr Kim Hak-Su Executive Secretary of UNESCAP.

Under its Trans-Asian Railway activities, UNESCAP has developed a programme of action aiming to run container block-trains along specific routes linking the Korean Peninsula to the heart of Europe.

At the Ulaanbaatar meeting, the countries committed themselves to running a series of pilot trains to demonstrate the effectiveness of international services. The ultimate objectives are to raise the awareness about the policies and measures to further improve transport efficiency across the region, reduce associated costs and promote existing services to a number of freight forwarders. "In this respect, the action undertaken by UNESCAP also provides a blueprint for greater partnership between railways and private sector," concluded Mr. Cable.

This impetus for a regional integration of transport infrastructure and the recognition of the specific needs of landlocked countries is receiving attention at the highest government level. Specific roadmaps to tackle the issues were outlined at the Ministerial Conference on Infrastructure (Seoul, Republic of Korea, November 2001) and, more recently, the Ministerial Conference of Landlocked and Transit Developing Countries (Almaty, Kazakhstan, August 2003).

Please click here to listen to an audio story about the Trans-Asian Railway Project by Karishma Vyas from the United Nations Information Services (3 minutes 35 seconds).

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