In the face of the Houthis, the United States can be said to have kicked the iron plate this time, whether it is good words and persuasion, or taking out spears and cannons, it has failed to achieve the desired containment effect, but has angered the Houthis and made the situation in the Red Sea more and more uncontrollable. In the face of the current dead end, the United States even put aside its pride for the first time, and repeatedly asked China to persuade the Houthis, and this also made the image of the leader that the United States had tried to establish through the formation of the Red Sea Fleet disappear, leaving only a figure tired of coping.
Due to the missile threat of the Houthis, many Western shipping companies are now choosing to take a detour to the Cape of Good Hope and take long distances to Europe or East Asia. As a result, the shipping route is bound to lengthen, and the shipping cost will naturally have to rise with the tide. In this case, the major shipping giants in the West have set their sights on the China-Europe train. Although in terms of cost, it will be a little more expensive to take the China-Europe train, but it is very advantageous in terms of time. For example, if you go to Poland from China, it takes nearly a month to detour the Cape of Good Hope, while it only takes half a month to take the China-Europe train. With the intensification of tensions in the Red Sea, the China-Europe freight train is now hard to find.
And this hot situation has also provided new ideas for South Korea.
[The China-Europe train exceeded 10,000 trains ahead of schedule today]
Although the Red Sea crisis is now difficult to solve, the impact on us is still very limited. Because the proportion of China's foreign trade is relatively low, and the export method does not only rely on shipping, plus we have the "gold medal for avoiding death" awarded to us by the Houthis, there is still a lot of room for maneuver. For South Korea, these three advantages are not available, and the economy is heavily dependent on foreign trade, so it is in a very awkward situation. South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol also said that South Korea now urgently needs a new route to Europe, and this road is our China-Europe train.
According to South Korean media, the Yoon Suk-yeol government is already sending people to communicate with our relevant departments, hoping to transport the goods from Incheon to our Weihai first, and then use the China-Europe freight train to transport them to Europe. While this may seem new, it's not the first time South Korea has done so. Last year alone, South Korean merchants transported 30,000 containers of goods with the help of China-Europe freight trains, and according to forecasts, this number is expected to rise to 40,000 this year.
Straddling the two continents of Asia and Europe, the China-Europe Railway Express connects 25 countries and 217 cities in Europe, and is a veritable Asia-Europe artery. According to data, since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the Red Sea crisis, the number of inquiries related to China-Europe freight trains has doubled compared with the past. And the extra double, in fact, is the goods that are transported by sea to land and then sent to Europe. It is foreseeable that with the entry of South Korea and other countries, the already busy China-Europe train is likely to be more lively.
And South Korea's move also makes us have to sigh how correct China's layout is.
[The situation in the Red Sea affects Asia-Europe trade]
In retrospect, in anticipation of the high trade with Europe, China spared no expense in the construction of the China-Europe railway line, which is also the only corridor under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative that directly connects China with developed countries. However, with the change in the EU's policy towards China, China's investment with the EU will increasingly be affected, but even if some Western countries were pessimistic, we did not give up, and it is only now that we realize how far-sighted China's move is. The importance of land transport quickly becomes apparent when maritime freight encounters challenges, a foresight that not all countries share
Since its launch in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has gone through a decade and is the world's largest, most extensive and most populous cooperation framework. The Belt and Road International High-Level Cooperation Forum held in Beijing in October last year was also unprecedented, attracting visits from leaders of various countries. Specifically, from the perspective of Asia, there are only four countries that did not participate in the conference, including South Korea. Now that South Korea is at a loss, it still relies on the train of the "Belt and Road" to find a way out, which is really embarrassing.
【China Successfully Hosted the Belt and Road Summit】
Although there is a large gap between rail and sea freight in terms of cost and carrying capacity, it has shown incomparable strategic value in some specific situations. Especially for cargo merchants who pursue a balance between efficiency and cost, in the face of the uncertainty of the Red Sea waters, the China-Europe freight train has obviously become the best alternative. If the Red Sea crisis continues for another two months, European cargo ships will have to take the Arctic route if they are not in order, and Russia will also benefit.
Combined with this series of recent events, people can't help but have the illusion that no matter where there is a war in this world, it seems that China is the one that has been winning. A Russia-Ukraine conflict has tested the value of China's manufacturing in the global supply chain, the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict has demonstrated China's good popularity among Middle Eastern countries, and the Red Sea crisis has tested the foresight of China's Belt and Road Initiative. Therefore, a person who is really good at fighting does not have to be a person who directly defeats the opponent, as long as he can maintain his own invincible position, it is also a way to win.