China has proposed its most expensive project of One Belt One Road (OBOR) to date, with a whooping $58 billion railway link connecting Pakistan’s Gwadar and Western China. According to a report by South China Morning Post, Beijing is taking the step to reduce its dependence on Western trade.
Analysts from the state-owned China Railway First Survey and Design Institute Group Co. Ltd reviewed the plan. The survey revealed that despite the hefty amount, the investment is worth it. The proposed 3,000 kilometers long railway link will connect Gwadar Port in Balochistan to the Chinese city of Kashgar in the Xinjiang province. The line would reshape the trade and change the geopolitics of the region and the world.
Statement by Analysts
In its statement, the analysts stated that China’s government and financial institutions should strongly support the proposal. “The authorities should also increase coordination and collaboration among the domestic departments while providing strong policy support to ensure the construction of this project,” they added.
Although this would be China’s first mega rail project in Pakistan, it is not the first time this institution is involved in a major global railway project. Earlier it was engaged in Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway line in Indonesia, Asia’s first high-speed rail system.
Through this proposed mega railway project, China plans to connect the world’s top manufacturers with the Arabian Sea, opening it up for new trade routes. It is also expected that this line could be further extended to Turkey and Iran, opening up direct access to the region.
It is pertinent to mention that China has already invested around $56 billion in China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) connecting Gwadar and Kashgar by road. This new mega project will further strengthen the trade and geostrategic relations between the two countries.
