Poland border closure choking China-EU rail trade

[Unknown987]

I think China responds with extra inspection on Polish milk and products. Besides, Poland also hurt the European car industry, which depends on Chinese parts. Most of the trade between the EU and China is by sea. Let's see how long it can last.

At EU level, the policy backdrop is a structurally imbalanced commercial relationship with China. According to the Commission and Eurostat, bilateral goods trade reached €732 billion in 2024, mostly carried by sea. Within that total, the EU’s goods deficit with China peaked at almost €400 billion in 2022 before narrowing in 2023. Against this scale, estimates that the rail closure affects on the order of €25 billion annually illustrate why the system-wide impact is limited even if certain supply chains face short-term pain.

Poland’s Attempt To Blackmail China Will Hurt Itself Most – Moon of Alabama

www.moonofalabama.org

I suspect that, behind the scene, less polite words were used by Wang Yi to express the Chinese view on Poland's attempt the hinder the freedom of global trade.

The migrants do not ride on Chinese freight trains. Blocking the railroad connection between China and Europe to prevent migrants from coming through Belarus is a very crude form of blackmail that will hit back.

Should the blockade continue Poland will have to bury all hope of any future investment from China.

Western European companies who depend on the railroad connection for their trade will also become more hostile to Poland.

The coming defeat of NATO in Ukraine will contribute to the end of the military alliance.

Poland's outrageous behavior makes it more likely that the defeat in Ukraine will also help to break up the European Union.

Poland is currently the recipient of the largest EU's agricultural subsidies. Why should Germany and others continue to pay for those when Poland is impeding their trade?

Poland is working hard to appease the Europeans and get as much favourable support for business by accepting their plan to block China and Russia trade routes.

 

[冖_冖]

Poland’s Tusk to reopen Belarus border

The closure was prompted by large Russian-led military exercises.

www.politico.eu

Poland’s Tusk to reopen Belarus border​

September 23, 2025 4:14 pm CET

WARSAW — Poland will reopen border crossings with Belarus at midnight from Wednesday to Thursday, ending a nearly two-week shutdown that's wreaked havoc on rail shipments between China and Europe, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Tuesday.

Tusk said the interior minister would follow up by issuing a regulation to reopen road and rail crossings.

“Taking into account the economic interests of Polish carriers, including PKP Cargo, we concluded that this preventive step has fulfilled its role,” the PM said.

The blockade disrupted a route that carries around €25 billion worth of EU-China trade. Poland’s state-controlled rail freight giant PKP Cargo warned that prolonged closure would divert freight south through Central Asia and the Black Sea, at a loss to the Polish economy.

While Beijing pressed Warsaw to restore traffic, Polish officials said the “logic of security” outweighed economic considerations at the time.

Tusk also hinted that Poland could shut the crossings again if threats reemerge. While the situation “is not joyful,” he said, the conclusion of the Zapad drills reduced — though did not eliminate — risks linked to Moscow’s “aggressive posture.”

“This tool remains at our disposal, and if tensions rise, we will not hesitate to use it again,” Tusk said.

 

[Beijingwalker]

Poland itself needs this route more than anyone else

Poland restores China’s main overland trade route to Europe​

Warsaw had kept border crossing with Belarus shut after Russian drones entered Polish airspace

The road crossing at the Polish-Belarusian border in Polowce-Pieszczatka © Wojtek Radwanski/AFP/Getty Images
September 23 2025

Poland is restoring a Belarus border crossing vital to China’s main overland trade route to Europe, almost two weeks after it was closed over security concerns that escalated when Russian drones entered Polish airspace.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the crossing, which was first closed ahead of Russian-Belarusian military exercises, would reopen at midnight on Wednesday evening.

’’This measure has served its purpose,’’ Tusk said. ‘‘If there is a need, if tensions increase or the aggressive behaviour of our neighbours increases, we will not hesitate and we will make appropriate decisions.’’

The military drills ended last week, but the closure was extended after Nato planes shot down Russian drones that entered Polish airspace, in the most serious confrontation between the US-led military alliance and Russian forces since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Tusk noted that Nato allies had reinforced their presence in his region. He said that a military mission launched in response to the drone incident — Eastern Sentry — ‘‘increases the sense of security”.

The Belarus crossing is important for China’s strategic train route. The connection offers exporters a faster alternative to sea freight which accounts for most Chinese exports to Europe.

Traders in China complained that their goods had been left stranded by the closure. “Many clients who usually prefer railway have been choosing ocean shipping instead,” said a representative at Shenzhen-based Yuefeng International Logistics ahead of the reopening. He said rail shipments from China to Europe take around 30 days, against 40-50 days by sea.

The Terespol-Brest railway crossing used by Chinese exporters was among a handful of rail and road crossings that were closed before the war games and will now be reopened.

About 1,500 trucks and buses were also stranded on the Belarusian side of the border last week because of the closure, according to the Polish road transport authority. Meanwhile, Chinese trains got stuck at the Belarusian station of Brest.

The decision to close the border led to speculation that Poland and Europe might also be seeking to put pressure on China over its tacit support for Russia’s war in Ukraine. Chinese companies have been filling gaps in Moscow’s economy left by western groups.

Filip Jirouš, a China analyst and researcher at the University of Basel, said that while the railway closure would have irritated China, it would be unlikely to seriously alter the strategic direction of Beijing’s policy on relations with Moscow.

“It’s something. But I’m not sure if this is enough,” said Jirouš on whether keeping the railway open offered Europe any leverage over China.

Rail shipments have been driven by Chinese ecommerce platforms such as Temu and Shein, which expanded rapidly in Europe after US President Donald Trump curtailed their access to the American market by scrapping a tax exemption on shipments of small parcels.

On Monday Belarusia’s President Alexander Lukashenko told Li Xi, a senior Chinese official who was visiting Minsk, that Poland’s border closure was “an unfriendly move against China,” according to Belta, the Belarusian state news agency.

Poland restores China’s main overland trade route to Europe

Warsaw had kept border crossing with Belarus shut after Russian drones entered Polish airspace

www.ft.com

 

[冖_冖]

China overtakes Germany as Poland's biggest source of imports for first time

notesfrompoland.com

China overtakes Germany as Poland’s biggest source of imports for first time​

China overtook Germany to become Poland’s biggest source of imports for the first time in July, according to new data from the central bank. It ends a period of around 35 years in which Germany had consistently held top spot.

The shift came as imports of Chinese goods surged, driven in part by a sharp increase in Chinese cars, while imports from Germany declined.

“In July 2026, China was the largest supplier of goods to Poland for the first time, overtaking Germany in that month,” wrote the National Bank of Poland (NBP) in an announcement on Monday.

“A significant increase in imports of computer hardware, passenger cars and durable consumer goods influenced the shift in the geographical structure of imports,” added the bank.



In a comment on the new data, analysts at PKO, a Polish bank, said that the July shift was partly due to “one-time factors” and noted that Germany remains Poland’s largest supplier on a 12-month basis, although its lead has been steadily shrinking.

In July, Polish imports from China rose 28.8% year-on-year, while imports from Germany fell 1.8%, according to PKO. Imports of motor vehicles from Germany fell 9.3% year-on-year, while imports from China rose 54.4%.

Imports from China of computers, electronics and optical equipment rose 31.5% year-on-year in July, the strongest increase since 2022.

More detailed data on trade with the two countries, published also on Tuesday by Statistics Poland (GUS), a state agency, provided further insight into the shift.

According to GUS, Poland imported goods worth €36.7 billion from China in the first seven months of the year, giving China a 15.9% share of total Polish imports, up from 14.9% in the same period of 2025.

Imports from Germany stood at €43.1 billion in that period, 18.6% of the total, down from 19.4% in 2025. Poland’s third-largest source of imports was the United States, with €12.7 worth of goods, a share of 5.5%, up from 4.9% in 2025.

 

[KAL-EL]

European NATO is pulling China into the European battlefield step by step.We will not allow Russia to fail, so the third world war will start in Europe.

Uhh Russia is already failing.

thinking China will get into the 'European battlefield' is living a bit in a fantasy world regarding that.