[Text/Observer Network Zhang Jingjuan] After Poland closed its border port with Belarus, China-Europe freight trains carrying 90% of China-Europe railway freight were suspended.
According to the website of the Belarusian Presidential Palace, on September 22, local time, Belarusian President Lukashenko held talks with a senior Chinese official to discuss related issues. Lukashenko believes that Poland's recent actions are unfriendly to China and a political act, but he believes that "China can easily deal with this problem".
On the 12th of this month, due to the "West-2025" joint strategic exercise, Poland closed all Polish-Belarus border crossings from now on. Although the military exercise ended on the 16th, Polish Minister of Interior and Administration Marcin Kelwinski announced at the press conference that all Polish-Belarus border crossings (including roads and railways) will remain closed indefinitely until "the safety of Polish citizens is fully guaranteed".
This decision directly cut off the important land transportation route of Chinese goods through Russia-Belarus-Poland into the European Union, according to the European Railway Freight Association estimates, currently 85-90% of China-European routes need to enter the European Union through Poland, which means about 300 trains filled with goods such as electronics, automotive parts, photovoltaic components stay in Belarus, and the overall cost of the supply chain increased by more than 15%.
During the talks, Lukashenko said the matter had nothing to do with Belarus, and that the Polish principle was “to act in the interests of other countries”. he said, “Many recent media hints about your visit to Belarus, our relationship with Poland and the closure of the border between Belarus and Poland.
Despite this, Lukashenko believes that “big powers like China can easily cope” with the challenge of border closure, but he acknowledges the issue is being widely discussed and expressed willingness to provide more relevant data and information to the Chinese side after the meeting.
President Lukashenko's website of Belarus
Faced with the complicated regional situation, Lukashenko once again reiterated Belarus's firm support for China: "When China needs us most, you can always rely on us. In the heart of Europe, you have the most reliable and sincere friends."
During the talks, Lukashenko highly appreciated China’s recent Global Governance Initiative, “We are pleased to support this initiative because it is fully in line with our policies. This global initiative is based on fairness and equality. It is an urgent initiative, which is why I was the first to support it at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Conference.”
It is worth noting that at the time of the interruption of the China-Europe line, the fourth plenary meeting of the China-Poland Intergovernmental Cooperation Committee was held in Warsaw on the 15th, and the meeting was jointly chaired by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China Wang Yi and the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland Sikorski.
The two sides exchanged views on the importance of developing an efficient and economically competitive Eurasian transport corridor and the key role Poland plays in it.The two sides recognized the benefits of providing mutually beneficial services in rail, sea and air freight, as well as the strengthening of existing and potential transport lines and logistics chains, and are willing to jointly ensure the safe and seamless operation of the European Union’s passenger lines.
China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Zhejiang also stressed at a routine press conference earlier that China-European line is the flagship project of China-Wave and China-European cooperation, in line with the common interests of both sides.
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