China completes 690-foot tunnel on 310-mile railway linking three countries in Asia

China has reached a key construction milestone on the long-delayed China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (CKU) railway, with workers drilling through the first tunnel on the Kyrgyz section as Beijing pushes ahead with a major trade route across Central Asia. The 210-meter (690-foot) tunnel was completed in the Kyrgyz section after full-scale construction began in June 2025, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on Saturday. Work on the section has now reached 17 percent. The development came shortly after Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Kyrgyzstan last week, where the two countries pledged to support the smooth construction of the railway. The project is a major component of China’s Belt and Road Initiative and is intended to create a route to markets farther west. Railway will cut across Central Asia The CKU railway will stretch for more than 500 kilometers (310 miles), including about 305 kilometers (190 miles) inside Kyrgyzstan. It will connect Kashgar in China’s western Xinjiang region with Andijan in Uzbekistan, crossing the mountainous terrain of Kyrgyzstan along the way. Once operational, the railway is expected to become the shortest overland connection between China and the Middle East and Europe. CCTV said it could reduce transit times by as much as eight days compared with the China-Europe Railway Express. The railway will also open a new trade route for southern Xinjiang. For landlocked Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, it will provide direct rail access toward Chinese and Asia-Pacific markets. Construction is already under way on 27 tunnels, 43 bridges and 88 roadbed sections. Work has also started at 20 planned railway stations, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua. Difficult terrain delayed the project The railway was first planned in 1997 but has faced decades of delays. Engineers struggled with tough mountain terrain, and disagreements over railway gauges added to the challenges. The project is also important geopolitically because it gives China a route that avoids the usual corridors through Russia and Kazakhstan. As China’s economic influence in Central Asia grows, Moscow has taken notice of the railway’s development. Kyrgyzstan has increasingly sought alternative sources of foreign investment as Russia’s regional influence faces pressure from the prolonged war in Ukraine, according to a Times of Central Asia report published during Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov’s visit to Beijing last year. At the same time, Russia and China continue to expand their economic relationship. Russian outlet Izvestia reported on Sunday that Moscow is upgrading existing rail crossings and considering new highways to handle growing bilateral trade. Two rail gauges will meet The CKU project has adopted a dual-gauge design to resolve the long-standing technical dispute. About 167.5 kilometers (104 miles) from the Chinese border to Makmal will use China’s standard railway gauge. The remaining section of nearly 140 kilometers (87 miles) toward Uzbekistan will use the Soviet-era broad gauge. Cargo will be transferred between systems at a planned hub in Makmal. “The significance of this arrangement is that China’s… standard gauge enters the heart of Central Asia for the first time,” Li Lifan, director of the Center for Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Studies at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told CCTV. China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Russia are all members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which celebrated its 25th anniversary at a leadership summit in Bishkek last week. Completion targets remain disputed Project chief engineer Xi Jihong said the railway could be ready for operations by June 2031. Uzbekistan, however, wants construction to move faster. Deputy Transport Minister Jasurbek Choriev said in June that Uzbekistan aimed to accelerate the work and complete the railway by 2028, according to the Tashkent Times. The different deadlines highlight the pressure surrounding a project that has remained on the drawing board for decades. The successful drilling of the first Kyrgyz tunnel now provides a tangible sign that construction is moving forward. Get the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.A versatile writer, Sujita has worked with Mashable Middle East and News Daily 24. When she isn't writing, you can find her glued to the latest web series and movies.