By: Kayhan Int’l Staff Writer

Iran and Tajikistan, which agreed last Friday to boost cooperation in the railroad transit sector in view of the growing importance of this vital means of transportation, especially for goods flowing in from China’s far eastern coasts, use the same Persian word for the railways, however with pronouncements that differ, thus with different Latin spellings when transliterate.
In Iran we write “rah-e ahan” (literally ‘iron road’ in English for the tracks), while our Farsi-speaking Tajik brothers, perhaps due to long estrangement from us (first Czarist Russia’s seizure and the then the Soviet occupation), write rohi ohoni” – meaning the same.
Whatever the phonological intricacies or linguistic in the case of the Chinese word “tiedao” for railways, the train that commences from the shores of the China Sea and reaches Iran through the Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, the 15-day train journey is safe, secure and short compared to the 40-day sea route to the Persian Gulf.
As a result, Tajikistan, which is not on the Chinese train route, will also greatly benefit – thanks to Dushanbe’s strong relations with Tehran and its multi-dimensional railway network excellently connected to Iraq and Turkey in the west, Russia in the northwest (through the Azerbaijan Republic) and Pakistan and Afghanistan in the east.
Iran sits on the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, which connects the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and, from there, to the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. The strategic partnership between the two countries enables freedom of navigation and enables China to diversify its energy sources.
By relying on overland routes, secure from any maritime pressures on the high seas by a malign US and its extra territorial sanctions, the Islamic Republic can better navigate the dangers, thereby enhancing its economic sovereignty and diversifying its import and export channels.
Iran’s trade with China will significantly increase. Its oil will have a top buyer ready, whereas it will have access to high-end products that are not available due to the illegal western sanctions.
The Islamic Republic is the only country in West Asia that will not stop selling oil to Beijing despite US pressures and threats in contrast to countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, and Kuwait, which are within the US sphere of influence.
This is not the lone freight train from China to arrive in Iran, as two more are already loaded with solar panels for the journey to the Islamic Republic.
Once the train timetable is fixed and finalised, China could extend the railroad to Europe.
Iran’s pivotal position presents China with the opportunity to connect the Chabahar port to Gwadar in Pakistan, which is a critical hub in Beijing’s BRI (Belt and Road Initiative).
In such a case a ‘golden ring’ will emerge to the exasperation of the US and encompassing China, Pakistan, Iran, Russia, and Turkey, while the Iranian railway network will be connected to the Central Asia, the Caspian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea routes.