Border Closure between Poland and Belarus Hits China-Europe Railway
According to TVP World, the leading news channel covering Poland and Central Europe, the closure of the Polish-Belarusian border has frozen a key route for Chinese exports to the European Union, prompting Beijing to put pressure on Warsaw to reopen it and restore the freight link, which is worth €25 billion a year.
Poland took the decision to close its frontier with Moscow-allied Belarus ahead of joint Russian-Belarusian military exercises, codenamed Zapad 2025, which started on Friday.
Following last week’s Russian drone incursion into Polish airspace, officials said the border closure would be in force until further notice. Three freight rail crossings, one for cars and another for trucks have been shut.
The freezing of rail routes, especially, are expected to have an impact on Chinese imports to the EU, given that 90% of rail freight between China and the bloc passes through Poland.
Beijing, which has friendly relations with Moscow and Minsk, is now attempting to pressure Poland to have it reopened. The two countries are set for high-level talks on Monday, with the Chinese Foreign Minister set to meet his Polish counterpart Radosław Sikorski on a visit to Warsaw.
‘Common interest’
On Thursday, a Chinese government spokesman expressed hope that Poland “will take effective measures to ensure the safe and smooth operation of the express and the stability of international industrial and supply chains.”
“The China-Europe Railway Express is a flagship project of the China-Poland and China-EU cooperation. The project benefits both sides,” he said.
Statistics testify to the importance of the rail route. Rail freight volume between China and the EU increased by 10.6% in 2024, according to transport market analysts Upply.
The value of cargo transported also increased drastically, reaching €25.07 billion—an 84.9% increase compared to 2023. Rail transport now accounts for 3.7% of total annual trade between the EU and China, up from 2.1% in the previous year.
E-commerce boom
“If this route were closed, some parcels would have to be shipped by sea, and others [up to an estimated 30%] by air. This will impact costs and operational quality,” CEO of delivery firm Last Mile Experts, Marek Różycki, told Polish daily Rzeczpospolita.
The lack of movement of goods has also impacted Polish companies, which expressed hope that the link will be quickly restored.
“If the border closure lasts only a few days, there won’t be a major problem. Trains arriving from China will be reloaded in Belarus and wait there for the border to open. We will only lose money on handling these reloads,” President of PKP Cargo Connect, Piotr Sadza told the newspaper.
“There is no good alternative to the rail route between China and the European Union. We assume the situation will quickly return to its previous state. Businesses must adapt to the circumstances,” Sadza added.
Trump trade pressure
The Chinese foreign minister’s Warsaw visit comes at a delicate time, with Warsaw reeling from Russia’s drone incursion last week, which it branded a “provocation.”
At the same time, U.S. President Donald Trump is putting pressure on EU countries to impose trade tariffs on China to urge Beijing to stop buying Russian oil. It is seen as a way of encouraging China to use its influence over Moscow to end the war in Ukraine.
Ahead of Monday’s meeting between Wang and Sikorski, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs its top diplomat would “exchange views with the Polish side on bilateral relations, China-EU relations and international and regional issues of common interest” and “develop a comprehensive plan for exchanges and cooperation between the two countries in various sectors.”
This article is reprinted from TVP WORLD, original author Jonathan Carter/sp, published on 15.09.2025, original link https://tvpworld.com/88930391/poland-belarus-border-closure-derails-a-key-chinese-export-route
This is a reprinted article, and the copyright belongs to the original author and the original source.
