Iran’s willingness to cooperate in the construction (bilateral or multilateral) of the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway and the practical exploitation of the Iran-Afghanistan-China railway route could create a huge transformation in increasing trade in the region and transit in the North-South and East-West corridors.
Samyar Rostami
In the past decade, with the announcement of Iran’s readiness to connect the Khaf-Herat railway to Mazar-e-Sharif (if the conditions of the Afghan government are met), the main steps for the Iran-Afghanistan-Tajikistan railway have been taken. The Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif-Wakhan railway, as a strategic route connecting Iran to China and Europe, has been the main focus of discussions between Iran and Afghanistan. Iran is advancing plans to create a new land rail corridor from Herat to Mazar-e-Sharif and continuing to Wakhan and China via Afghanistan.
The construction and development of all corridors with the participation of Afghanistan is not possible without establishing complete security and stability in this country
Tehran has introduced the construction of the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway as the first phase of the Iran-Afghanistan-China strategic corridor. From this perspective, the rail connection from Herat to Mazar-e-Sharif and then through the Wakhan Corridor to the Xinjiang region of China is a strategic route.
The Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway is also part of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Tajikistan-Afghanistan-Iran corridor plan, a 2,100-kilometer route.
In line with promoting the 14th government’s rail diplomacy. One of the main axes of the negotiation is to examine new transit routes, including a rail connection from Iran to China via Afghanistan.
Mehdi Safari, head of the Supreme Strategic Council of the North-South and East Transit Consortium, recently emphasized that to receive maximum transit, the establishment of a rail and road route with Afghanistan is being considered.
In January, Jabar Ali Zakiri, CEO of Iran Railways, held a joint meeting with Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban’s deputy prime minister for economic affairs. He discussed a new chapter in the two countries’ strategic cooperation in the field of rail transport and the plan to connect Iran to China via Afghanistan and accelerate the corridor. In addition, Kabul and Tehran recently agreed to form a joint committee to expand rail cooperation between the two sides, develop an operational and executive structure for the project in the field of rail construction and development, the presence of Iranian managers and contractors, follow up on the project’s roadmap, and then begin executive operations.
In continuation of this approach, Iran is examining operational solutions and the issue of constructing a rail route in exchange for mineral exchange on the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif route. The plan proposes the participation of private rail activists from the two countries in financing and implementing this major Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif rail project, focusing on utilizing the potential of Afghanistan’s mines as the financial backing for this plan.
While plans to launch a passenger train on the Mashhad-Herat route are ongoing, the unprecedented jump in rail freight to Afghanistan has increased from about 5,000 tons per month to more than 70,000 tons per month in the past year.
Iran also plans to provide a rail connection to Afghanistan through the construction of the Chabahar-Zahedan railway and the Zaranj-Kandahar railway project.
Tehran continues its multilateral efforts towards rail diplomacy with Afghanistan. At the trilateral meeting in October 2025 between Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkey, they agreed to develop trilateral cooperation in the field of railways by launching the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway project with joint and comprehensive cooperation and using the financial, technical, and human resources of the aforementioned countries.
This is while China’s “economic interaction” within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has grown by 75 percent to $213.5 billion in 2025. In fact, transportation and transit, win-win cooperation between the two countries of Iran and China in important projects, such as the electrification of the Tehran-Mashhad railway, rail connection of the two countries through Pakistan, investment in Shahid Rajaee Port, can be strengthened along with the rail connection of the two countries through Afghanistan.
Positive consequences
Landlocked Afghanistan is trying to develop the rail transport network throughout the country.
For example, Abdul Ghani Baradar, while welcoming the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway project, has ordered that the Tehran-Kabul Joint Committee be established as soon as possible and the practical work of the project begin without delay. Afghanistan has the potential to connect the Middle East-China, Central Asia-South Asia and become a regional hub for trade, transit, and economic development.
The launch of the railway will put the central and northern provinces on the path of progress and development and could be an opportunity to export minerals to Afghanistan’s vast mines. In addition, it can grant the country the right of transit annually.
If the new corridor becomes operational, Afghanistan will be directly connected to China, and the chances of Beijing’s greater presence in Afghanistan’s mineral resources will also increase.
The Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway could also be extended to Sherkhan Bandar in Kunduz province to connect to the Tajik border. It will also reduce the level of threats by linking interests and help develop sustainable stability and security in the region.
The construction of the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway is also of interest to supporters of the multipolar connectivity network and Eurasian allies such as Russia and China. Afghanistan’s northern neighbors, such as Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, are now more inclined towards safer routes through Iran.
Obstacles and perspectives
Although the first phase of the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif project will proceed in the form of a feasibility study until March 2026, upgrading the existing infrastructure and building a new railway line through mountainous obstacles requires huge financial resources.
The construction and development of all corridors with the participation of Afghanistan is not possible without establishing complete security and stability in this country. In fact, the future structure of the Afghan political system, the achievement of peace, or the outbreak of civil war can all have a negative or positive impact on the railway plans. Getting around US sanctions on Iran is also considered a major problem.
In fact, the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway is part of the Chinese corridors. Therefore, there is a possibility of more investment and practical participation of China in this project.
However, Iran’s willingness to cooperate in the construction (bilateral or multilateral) of the Herat-Mazar-e-Sharif railway and the practical exploitation of the Iran-Afghanistan-China railway route could create a huge transformation in increasing trade in the region and transit in the North-South and East-West corridors.
Samyar Rostami, а political observer and senior researcher in international relations
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