China persists to amaze with its achievements. Major European companies contribute to its project as they believe in the country’s economic potential. China together with German Rail launched the world’s longest freight train route connecting Harbin city, located in the northeast of China, with one of the largest German industrial city Hamburg.
The economic downturn has been a force compelling to reconsider the rooted habits and traditions and to reassess fundamentally the changed situation and the new possibilities that are opening up. Since the economy of Asian countries is rapidly growing and their freight flows to Europe are getting larger, Lithuania has offered its Eastern and Western partners cheaper and high-quality alternatives to the established trade routes.
It seems that quite not so long ago – on February 6, 2003, – after a bilateral agreement was signed by the then Lithuanian and Ukrainian Prime Ministers Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas and Viktor Yanukovich, the first Viking Train set out on its journey from the port of Ilyichevsk towards Klaipėda. Already at the end of that year it could be discerned that the project was launched successfully and would be accompanied by luck and success in the future. During the decade of its existence, the train has transported 5 million tons of freight and has encouraged cooperation among the countries of the region.
“Lithuanian Railways”, which is representing both the railway sector and the entire Lithuanian transport system, comprehending the need and benefit of international cooperation, is actively operating at all international levels. One of such examples is its cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development as well as private stevedoring companies on the development of Klaipėda Transport Hub. The project aims at financing the international container distribution centre in the port of Klaipėda.
