Xian, the capital of Shaanxi province, is expected to develop as an international cargo hub serving China, Central Asia and Europe, after a cooperation agreement was signed by the Xian International Trade and Logistics (ITL) Park and Kazakhstan’s National Railway Co. The agreement, which was signed on April 14 in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, aims to develop international logistics between China and Kazakhstan, said Yang Mingrui, Director of ITL’s Administration Committee. A trade delegation, led by Han Song, Deputy Mayor of Xian and Party Secretary of ITL, visited Central Asian countries in April to investigate and signed the agreement with Kazakhstan’s national railway company. Under the agreement, Kazakhstan is expected to establish a new railway express company to organize and coordinate the transport of goods from China to Kazakhstan and the transit of cargo across Kazakhstan, including goods sent from ITL. “Every month, two container trains will be sent from ITL to Kazakhstan and the goods will be distributed in Kazakhstan to other Central Asian countries. Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s railway express company will make ITL its cargo distribution hub for its international logistics business,” Yang said. ITL intends to build a special economic zone industrial park in Horgos, a border city in Xinjiang next to Kazakhstan. A logistics pier in the park will distribute goods from China’s inland regions to Central Asia, Russia and Europe, Yang added. The Chang’an train was the first international cargo train to run from Xi’an to Kazakhstan and started operating on November 28, 2013. It was also the first freight train to run directly from inland Shaanxi province to Central Asian countries. China Railway Corp plans to form an express railway route from China to Europe. The Chang’an freight train will follow one main route and two branch routes. The main 9,850 km route was designed to link Xian with Rotterdam. One of the branch routes will run from Xian to Kazakhstan and the other from Xian to Moscow. To date the Chang’an international freight trains have run seven times. In April, the trains ran twice with 104 carriages, the China Daily reports.