Khorgas, once a crossing point through the mountains on the ancient Silk Road, is today the site on the Chinese-Kazakh border of a giant “land port,” a huge railway and transport hub that will speed containers from China on to Europe. Regular train service already delivers containers of Chinese goods to Europe in about half the time it takes for a container ship, though at higher cost. The first regular freight train service to the Middle East reached Tehran in 2016. China is spearheading a $6 billion
