Central Asia 2024: The Trans-Caspian International Transport Route and strengthening the EU-Kyrgyzstan partnership
The ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war and the evolving security situation in the Red Sea , due to attacks by the Yemeni Houthi movement on ships in this critical global trade corridor, have forced European countries to find an alternative commercial transport route that connects them with China without going through Russia, the Red Sea, or the Suez Canal. Europe's attention is now focused more than ever on the Middle Corridor, a combined land, sea, and rail trade route that can link China with the EU. In 2023, China was the EU's third-largest export partner accounting for 8.8% of EU exports, while imports from China made up 20.5% of the EU's total imports. Germany is leading European efforts to strengthen the infrastructure of this corridor to bypass the northern trade route, which connects China to Europe and passes through Russia. The three largest exporters to China from the EU are Germany (€97 billion), France (€25 billion), and the Netherlands (€22 billion)[ 2 ]. The