Crossroads Asia | Economy | Central Asia

The Politics of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway

With the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway to be completed by 2030, discussion is shifting from regional connectivity to who will benefit most. 

In late March 2026, during the celebration of the Central Asian new year, Nawruz, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov announced the latest target for the completion of  China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (CKU) railway: 2030.

“If now we live in a ‘dead-end’ country between Europe and China, with the completion of the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway we will turn into a transit power,” Japarov said. 

To construct the railway, a joint venture was launched, with 51 percent owned by China and the rest divided between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. China provided a $2.3 billion loan while the remaining financing was to be contributed by the three partner countries in proportion to their shares: $1.1 billion by China, and $573 million each from Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

The opening ceremony of the construction of the railway was held on December 27, 2024. Japarov called it “a historical event that gave impetus to the development of Central Asian countries.” The railway is expected to be 533 kilometers long, with 305 km running through Kyrgyzstan. 

Once completed, this new route will shave about a week off cargo delivery times. The railway will run from Kashgar through Torugart, Makmal, and Jalal-Abad to Andijan, creating a new east-west link that could integrate with Trans-Caspian routes toward Turkiye and Europe. In the longer term, it may also connect to southbound corridors toward Pakistan, although those links remain under development.

As the CKU railway’s construction progresses, the questions have shifted from the practical to the strategic: who will control the corridor’s economy? Kyrgyz discussions of logistics hubs and warehouse infrastructure demonstrate that  the corridor is already being conceptualized in Bishkek beyond mere tracks. The project currently employs over 4,000 workers and 5,000,000 units of equipment in Kyrgyzstan and includes the construction of 50 bridges and 29 tunnels. Earlier Japarov noted the CKU railway could generate $200 million in revenue for Kyrgyzstan. However, in a recent interview with the Times of Central Asia, Edil Baisalov, Kyrgyzstan’s deputy prime minister, forecast $300 million annual revenue.

Bishkek’s optimism around the CKU is not limited to revenue from being a transit country. Kyrgyzstan is looking for a wider transformation in the country’s economy with an increase in the export of natural resources as well as the development of metallurgical plants and even new towns along the railroad. Baisalov noted that during the Soviet era, Kyrgyzstan’s raw materials were largely ignored in favor of other resource-rich countries and Kyrgyzstan remained........

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