Border tensions disrupt overland China–EU trade
Poland closing its border with Belarus has shut a substantial trade corridor between the EU and China that handles EUR25 billion ($29.5 billion) in annual shipments, Politico reported on Sept. 18.
Initially announced as a temporary measure related to Russia–Belarus military exercise, the closure now appears indefinite, with Polish authorities saying, “traffic will be restored once the border is fully safe.”
According to the report, the trade corridor carries 90 percent of rail freight between China and the EU. In 2024, rail volumes on the route rose 10.6 percent, while the value of goods jumped almost 85 percent to EUR25.07 billion. It now accounts for 3.7 percent of total EU-China trade.
Polish economy is certain to feel the impact of the overland link with China being severed. State rail operator PKP Cargo said it can manage minor delays, but an extended border closure will force freight onto longer southern routes through Kazakhstan, across the Caspian and Black seas, and into the Balkans or Turkey.
“The complete border closure is a crucial problem—not only for transport and logistics but for the whole economy,” the report quoted Artur Kalisiak, director of strategic projects at the Transport and Logistics Poland association.
On Sept. 9, Polish PM Donald Tusk announced the border would be closed because of the planned joint Russia-Belarus military exercises, Zapad-2025. The exercises included U.S. observers and ended on Sept. 16.
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