The rail connecting the north's major city, Mazar-i-Sharif, is being renovated, and the Taliban authorities say it will be operational in June. Measuring just 75 km in length, it plays a significant role in the Taliban government's plans to bring numerous abandoned railway projects back to life. The long-envisioned Trans-Afghan Railway aims to eventually connect Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan with 700 kilometres of track, backed by the three countries that have established a working group. Andrew Grantham, the news editor of the UK-based Railway Gazette International, a media outlet dedicated to covering developments in the rail sector, mentioned that people had been discussing the Trans-Afghan Railway for over 100 years. He also noted that besides foodstuffs and logs from Russia, fuel and other materials arrived in Hairatan from Central Asian republics and China, with the Taliban government aspiring to see those goods traverse Afghanistan by rail under their rule. He stated that it was one of two railway projects the Taliban authorities were pursuing to better connect Afghanistan, a country plagued by decades of war and poverty that had never built its own railways. Grantham explained that a second line of more than 200 km at the other end of the country was intended to connect the city of Herat with its western neighbour Iran, providing Afghanistan with an outlet to the sea, Turkey, and Europe. He mentioned that this was a project envisaged for some 15 years, long before the Taliban's return to power in 2021. Abdulsami Durrani, the national railway spokesperson in Kabul, mentioned that building a line all the way through to Pakistan would take time. He stated that as per their current estimates, once the actual work on this project begins, the construction phase will take three to five years. He added that preliminary figures suggested a price tag of $4-5 billion, though he remained vague about sources of funding, saying, We are in discussions with various countries and financial institutions. He acknowledged that foreign funds had withered since the Taliban's return to power, as their government was not formally recognised by any country. Grantham commented that building a railway on that scale in five years was not likely to happen, emphasising that Kabul would need foreign financial and technical aid. He added that Western companies would likely not be interested due to security and safety issues and the political environment. However, he noted that Central Asian countries such as Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, as well as Russia, were already working with Afghanistan. Regarding connectivity, Grantham remarked that the projects do seem to be happening, noting that the line connecting Herat to Iran can be up and running reasonably quickly. He mentioned that, assuming Iran was supportive, it should be a viable project. Durrani mentioned that the 47 km section would be built in two years for $53 million, with Russian and Turkish partners. Durrani added that this railway would give landlocked Afghanistan access to the sea and connect it with international trade routes, significantly impacting Afghanistan's economy. He emphasised that the more km of railways are developed in the country, the more our trade with other countries will increase. However, he acknowledged that aside from funding, there were thorny technical issues to resolve, notably the track gauge.