Since October last year, many “China-Europe freight trains” originating from China have been detained in Russia, with no official statement from the Chinese authorities. Recently, the Chinese Ambassador to Russia admitted that some China-Europe freight trains were detained in Russia and only released after deep communication. The Russia-China relationship has attracted attention.
According to reports from Phoenix TV, on March 10th, during the “Two Sessions,” Zhang Hanhui, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and the Chinese Ambassador to Russia, was asked about the recent online reports of some China-Europe freight trains being detained in Russia. He confirmed that after deep communication with the Russian side, automotive parts and other products had been exempted, problematic products had been returned, and all other goods had been released, resolving the issue.
Zhang Hanhui mentioned that this action was taken by the Russian government after the special military operation in 2022 (the Russian invasion of Ukraine and outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war). The Russian feedback indicated that some shipments from individual enterprises contained dual-use products that could potentially be used in warfare. Customs declarations only indicated general categories, and the Russian side was unaware of the exact contents of the containers.
However, a report from Caixin on January 27th stated that the detention of China-Europe freight trains stemmed from Resolution No. 1374 passed by the Russian government on October 15, 2024. This resolution expanded on the list of goods banned from transit through Russian territory, which was initially set in Resolution No. 313 on March 9, 2022, to include items such as machinery, electronics, and camouflage clothing, primarily targeting dual-use items.
The timeline of Resolution No. 1374 and Zhang Hanhui’s statement seemed inconsistent. Zhang Hanhui vaguely referred to measures taken by Russia post-2022 Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Caixin reported that in recent months, numerous China-Europe freight train containers destined for Europe were sequentially detained in Russia. Many logistics industry insiders mentioned that some of their goods bound for Europe were still stuck in Russia.
According to Caixin, “Some customers’ Christmas cotton clothing, Christmas has long passed, and the goods are still withheld.” Liu Zan, the General Manager of Bondatong Logistics (Hunan) Co., Ltd., stated that since late October 2024, their company had containers passing through Russia being detained one after another. Liu’s company mainly deals with full container loads and consolidated shipments on the China-Europe freight train route, with a cumulative impact on 70 containers.
Industry insiders indicated that at least over a thousand containers were affected by the detainment, leading to some cargo owners refraining from using the China-Europe freight train service. Coupled with the off-peak season before the Chinese New Year, the China-Europe freight train service saw a negative growth, with ports like Alashankou becoming vacant.
At present, there are four main routes in the China-Europe railway corridor, with three of them passing through Russia.
Russia’s sudden detention of a large number of China-Europe freight train containers has drawn attention from Chinese netizens.
“Russia issued an order, and now at least half of the China-Europe freight trains have fallen apart. It’s like this sanction and that sanction, even clothes heading to Europe are affected. I don’t know if there’s an impact on Europe, but we’re definitely the most affected.”
“Is this part of the ‘no limit’?””One has no upper limit, the other has no lower limit, it’s quite something.””Is this the legendary two-way street? One willing to push, the other willing to yield.””Playing both sides, reaping what you sow, no limit.””If the detention started back in October last year, why is it only coming to light now?”
Sun Guoxiang, a professor at the Department of International Affairs and Business at South China University of Technology, previously analyzed for Epoch Times that the main reason for Russia detaining China-Europe freight train goods may be concerns that these supplies might eventually flow into the Ukrainian battlefield.
Furthermore, he stated that Russia retaliated against EU sanctions, exerting pressure on Chinese companies not to overly cooperate with the West. Additionally, detaining China-Europe freight train goods may also aim to enhance their domestic transportation advantage, compelling more goods to pass through Russia’s logistics system to increase transit fee revenue.
Sun Guoxiang also expressed that although China is Russia’s largest trading partner, the Russian side still desires to maintain a certain degree of strategic autonomy, avoiding complete dependence on China.