Where does the vitality of small border towns come from

Urumqi, December 17 (Xinhua) -- Xinhua Economic Essay: "Shankou" Jumps into the "Wind", Where does the vitality of small border towns come from

Recently, the 100000th China Europe freight train arrived in Duisburg, Germany.. It is not widely known that this train passes through a small town on the northwest border of China, which is a "key point" for thousands of trains to pass smoothly

Thousands of years ago, camel caravans wandered and trekked; Thousands of years later, the train roared and raced. How can the fast train of the times change the fate of a border town? How to find the right positioning and accelerate development in border areas? In Alashankou City, Xinjiang, we are searching for answers

On the western edge of the the Junggar Basin, there are two towering snow mountains, Alataw Mountain and Baluke Mountain. The narrow mountain pass in the middle is Alataw Pass. This place is known as the 'black wind vent' due to the year-round fierce winds. Alashankou was an ancient Silk Road relay station in history. But the harsh natural environment has slowed down the development here

In 2011, the arrival of the first China Europe freight train pushed small towns on the northwest border to the forefront of openness. In 2012, Alashankou Port was approved by the State Council to be established as a city

For over a decade, there have been over 40000 China Europe freight trains operating here, with routes covering 21 countries and regions. The railway port has become one of the five major channels for China Europe freight trains, and the annual freight volume of import and export at the highway port has exceeded 1 million tons... Alashankou has become a truly international logistics hub

Nowadays, Alashankou is full of vitality everywhere. The streets in the city are straight and wide, and the residential areas are grand and spacious, with shops lining the streets on both sides. Clothing stores, import commodity cities, and handicraft shops offer a wide variety of goods. The enthusiastic boss smiled and skillfully operated the translator to introduce their own products to foreign customers

The wind is still the same as before, and Alashankou is no longer what it used to be

Local officials in Alashankou sighed, "The sound of the whistle leading to the world has become the precursor to the rise of the city. This is the luck of the small town and the dividend of the times." The change in the appearance of the city is also due to people's concepts and practices: insisting on using reform and opening up to increase power and vitality

The most distinctive label of Alashankou is "port". Over the years, the local government has continuously strengthened investment in infrastructure and enhanced the carrying capacity of ports; Actively developing emerging industries such as processing and manufacturing, financial services, and cross-border e-commerce; Continuously improve customs clearance efficiency and create a smart customs

The annual growth rate of cross-border e-commerce export value has remained above 20%, the digital China Europe freight hub project has been launched, and Xinjiang's first "highway port+local direct" customs clearance model has been implemented... Dare to liberate our minds, innovate and seek change, and new things continue to emerge in the open development of Alashankou

The speed of passage at the port here is faster. Reducing the clearance time for enterprises by one point will increase their efficiency by one point In an interview, a local business leader explained the "magnetic force" of Alashankou in this way

Looking out from the entrance of Alashankou, rows of white wind turbines stand tall like giants. The thousand year old raging wind is becoming a new trend for the green development of small towns

Remote areas are not to be feared, but the borderlands are also remarkable

In the era of jointly building the "the Belt and Road", it is a valuable experience for the Gobi to organize and close open channels, gather advantageous industries, and optimize port services. For border towns, fully leveraging the advantages of the "border" and writing articles about the "border" is the key to taking advantage of the situation

At present, the busyness of ports in the southwest, northwest and northern border areas of China has become normal. Border cities such as Khorgos and Erenhot are rising rapidly, which vividly interprets the development opportunities brought by the "the Belt and Road" initiative and shows the vitality of opening up

Accelerate innovation and exploration, abandon isolation and rigidity, leverage the advantages of coastal and border areas, and create diverse forms of open highlands. More border areas will surely leap from the "mountain pass" to the "wind outlet" and board the era train to development and prosperity