Iran’s rail freight capacity with Afghanistan could increase from about 1 million metric tons a year to 3 million tons if infrastructure is expanded and the Khaf-Herat railway is fully connected, Shahriar Naghizadeh, acting director general of foreign commerce at Iran’s Railway, told IRAF.
The Khaf-Herat corridor is one of the main joint railway projects between Iran and Afghanistan, designed to connect Afghanistan to the regional rail network and facilitate the country’s foreign trade. The route links Afghanistan to the international railway network through Iran and onward to Iran’s southern ports.
Given Afghanistan’s geographical position and its need for secure and sustainable trade routes, the development of railway lines and transit corridors has become an important area of regional cooperation. Iran has also emphasized in recent years its role as one of Afghanistan’s principal routes to open waters and global markets.
In an interview with IRAF, Naghizadeh said the Khaf-Herat corridor is one of the most significant rail connectivity projects between Iran and Afghanistan and could play an important role in expanding trade between the two countries.
“The Khaf-Herat corridor is one of the important rail connectivity projects between Iran and Afghanistan that can play a significant role in expanding trade between the two countries.”
He explained that Iran’s railway network enters Afghanistan through the Shamtigh border crossing and extends about 64 kilometers inside Afghan territory.
“Iran’s railway network enters Afghanistan through the Shamtigh border crossing and extends about 64 kilometers inside Afghanistan. The route will continue toward Herat, and once the rail connection to the city is completed, transport capacity between the two countries will increase significantly.”
According to Naghizadeh, the current rail transport capacity between Iran and Afghanistan is about 1 million tons annually and could reach 3 million tons with infrastructure development and the full completion of the route.
He said rail freight between the two countries has been increasing, noting that approximately 700,000 tons were transported last year.
“Last year we had nearly 700,000 tons of rail transport with Afghanistan, and this year good growth has taken place in this sector.”
He added:
“Our forecast is that by the end of the current year, the volume of rail transport between Iran and Afghanistan will reach around 1.5 million tons.”
Naghizadeh said expanding rail routes could reduce Afghanistan’s dependence on limited transit corridors and provide the country with more options for foreign trade.
Asked whether Iran could become Afghanistan’s main foreign trade route, he said:
“Afghanistan is a landlocked country and needs to use the transit routes of neighboring countries to gain access to open waters. Iran is one of the important and natural routes for Afghanistan’s access to southern ports and international markets.”
Referring to Iran’s southern ports, he said:
“Before the recent developments in the region, it was possible to transport Afghanistan’s goods through Iran to the southern ports, and this capacity can still be used to develop Afghanistan’s trade.”
Naghizadeh also stressed the role of transport infrastructure in economic development.
“No country can achieve sustainable development without developing transport routes and transport corridors. Railways are one of the most important drivers of economic development, and wherever the railway network has expanded, economic prosperity has followed in that region.”
He pointed to the impact of the railway inside Afghanistan.
“This 65-kilometer railway line built by Iran inside Afghanistan, in the Herat region, has led to the establishment of transport companies, logistics activities, employment for local people, and the development of related businesses.”
Turning to the idea of connecting Iran and China by rail through Afghanistan, Naghizadeh said the proposal remains at a conceptual stage.
“At present, this is more of an idea and a vision that we hope will be realized in the future.”
He continued:
“Afghanistan borders China on one side and Iran on the other. If this connection is established, Iran can be connected to China through Afghanistan, and China can reach European markets via a shorter route.”
He added that such a project would depend on regional stability.
“The realization of such a project requires regional stability and peace, as well as the necessary conditions for expanding infrastructure cooperation among the countries of the region.”
No direct China-Iran-Afghanistan train has operated, official says
Naghizadeh also rejected recent reports claiming that the first direct transit train from China had reached Afghanistan through Iran’s railway network and the Khaf-Herat corridor.
He said no train has yet departed directly from China, crossed Iran’s rail network, and entered Afghanistan. While Chinese cargo may have been transited to Afghanistan after arriving in Iran, he said that should not be described as a direct China-Afghanistan train.
In recent days, some Afghan media outlets reported that the first direct transit train from China had reached Afghanistan through Iran and the Khaf-Herat corridor. According to those reports, a 500-ton shipment of MDF boards was loaded in Beijing and, after passing through Turkmenistan and Iran, arrived at the Rozanak station in Herat province without unloading or reloading. The reports described the development as an important step toward strengthening Afghanistan’s position as a bridge linking East and West Asia.
Naghizadeh rejected the reports.
“It should be clarified which source published this report, because such an event has not occurred in this way. We have trains operating between China and Iran, and this rail transport between the two countries is underway. But we have not yet had a China-Iran-Afghanistan train that departs directly from China and enters Afghanistan after passing through Iran’s railway network.”
He added:
“It is possible that some of the cargoes imported from China into Iran were later transited to Afghanistan, but this is different from saying that a direct train traveled from China to Afghanistan.”
He said reporting on rail transport should distinguish between cargo transit and the launch of a direct rail service.
“In reporting on rail transport, a distinction must be made between ‘cargo transit’ and ‘the launch of a direct train between two countries,’ because these two concepts have fundamental technical and operational differences.”
