China-Europe freight trains act as carrier for BRI, boost trade exchanges

Aerial photo taken on March 19, 2021 shows a Yuxin'ou (Chongqing-Xinjiang-Europe) China-Europe freight train setting out from the Tuanjie Village Station of southwest China's Chongqing Municipality. With a loud train whistle echoing through the air, a freight train bound for Duisburg, Germany, slowly pulled out of the Tuanjie Village Station of southwest China's Chongqing Municipality on Friday morning. "Exactly a decade ago, I signaled for China's first China-Europe freight train, the Yuxin'ou (Chongqing-Xinjiang-Europe), to depart here," Zhang Xin recalled while seeing the train disappearing in the distance. Zhang has dedicated himself to 12 years as head of the station. For the past decade, the rumbling trains have not only put the once-obscure and dilapidated station on the map but also acted as a carrier for the Belt and Road Initiative, boosting trade exchanges between inland Chinese regions and Europe. (Xinhua/Tang Yi)