Iran restarts part of railway linking its northeast region to Afghanistan

Iran’s Khaf-Herat railway linking Khaf in Iran’s North East to Afghanistan’sRozanak was launched on Tuesday afternoon, following the completion of repairs, state-owned Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reports. The railway, which forms part of a major 2k km East-West railroad that spans China, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Turkey to connect to Europe.

What repairs? The railway was originally launched in December 2020, but later incurred damages to parts of the routes and to the Rozanak Station, and was halted.

6 mn cargo capacity: The railway line facilitates trade between Iran and Afghanistan and creates the annual capacity of transiting 6 mn tons of goods between the two countries. The railway will also provide Afghanistan access to high seas through Iranian ports, IRNA writes.

Background: The project originally started in 2007, though was completed last year following several years of delays caused by changes in Afghanistan’s government.