International rail route threatened by Polish worries

Polish concerns are threatening a major rail transport route linking Asia with Southern Europe. Poland had been expected to contribute to the construction of a 140 kilometer stretch of the "rail terminal" between Slawkow in the south of the country and Bohumin in the Czech Republic, part of a route designed to carry millions of tons of goods from Russia and Asia via the Czech Republic to the South of Europe. "Poland's doubts are a stumbling block to the construction of the terminal. Poles don't like the idea," wrote the Prague daily Pravo, commenting on talks between Czech Transportation Minister Jaromir Schiling and Polish Infrastructure Minister Marek Pol held in Warsaw last week. In October Schiling reached agreement on the plan with the transportation ministers of Russia and Ukraine, after which the three sides created a consortium, excluding Poland. "Schiling was sure the new Polish government would not change the decision of the former Cabinet. However, confronted with a strong defense of Poland's economic interests, he had to try and convince the Polish side of the benefits of the joint cooperation," Pravo reported. The Czech Republic was said to be unprepared for a Polish proposal for setting up an international team of experts from the countries involved in the project. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B2) A.Z.