OnJune 30, thelaunching ceremony of the inaugural trans-Caspian China-Europe freight train from Beijing to Baku,Azerbaijan was successfully held in Fangshan District, alongside a promotional event for building Fangshan District into a national-level logistics hub. The trans-Caspian route, Beijing’s fifth international transport trunk line, marks another major milestone in thecity’shigh-quality, coordinated development underthe Belt and Road Initiative.

Operated by Fangshan International Land Port Management Company, the freight train is loaded with 104 TEUs carrying over 2,300 tons of exportgoodsincluding auto partsand machinery, worth more than 15 million yuan. Departingfrom Beijing, the train exits Chinavia the Horgos Port in Xinjiang. It then travels through Kazakhstan to Aktau Port on the eastern Caspian shore.After transferring to a ferry to cross the Caspian Sea, the cargo arrived at the Alyat Port. From there, itcontinues by rail to Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital. The entire journey, extending more than 8,000 kilometersand taking around 15 days, employs“rail-sea-rail”multimodal transport. Upon arrival in Baku, partof the cargo will be further distributed to countries such as Georgia, Türkiye, and Serbia.

“The trans-Caspian route unlocks the full potential of China-Europe freight train as a strategic channel, offering better support for Beijing’s export,” said Wang Chuanmeng, General Director of Fanshan International Land Port Management Company. By leveraging multimodal transport with rail and ferry, the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), which serves as the southern channel for China-Europe trains, shortens the transit time and strengthens the resilience of overseas transport routes againstvariousrisks. Additionally, it coversmore countries around the Caspian, Black, and Mediterranean seas, and those in Central, Eastern, and Western Europe, thereby further expanding the overseas market for Beijing enterprises.

As a crucial multimodal transport route integrating rail and maritime transport that spans the Eurasian continent, the TITR is shorter than traditional maritime routes with significantly improved freight reliability and controllability.