of the planned Five Nations Railway Corridor between China and Iran through Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan. The new Khaf – Rahzanak rail line continues from Khaf to Torbat-e Heydarieh where it links with Mashhad – Bafq railway line a crucial rail link opened in 2009 which connects port city, Bandar Abbas in Persian Gulf with north eastern city of Mashhad and from there with Turkmenistan through Sarakhs. Afghanistan–Pakistan rail service Two broad gauge Pakistan Railways lines with steep gradients terminate on the border at Chaman and Torkham. In July 2010, Pakistan and Afghanistan signed a Memorandum of understanding for going ahead with the laying of rail tracks between the two countries. The rail tracks would link Quetta in Pakistan with Kandahar in Afghanistan and Peshawar in Pakistan with Jalalabad in Afghanistan. The project soon fell off. On May 29, 2012, the section from Chaman in Pakistan to Spin Boldak in Afghanistan () was approved, though this never started. On February 22, 2020, the first cargo train bound for Afghanistan left Karachi, Pakistan with a load of containers. Pakistan Railways Chairman Habib-ur-Rehman Gilani inaugurated the train on Saturday which departed from the Pakistan International Container Terminal in Karachi with 35 containers on board for the country's southwest Chaman city bordering Afghanistan. From there, the goods will be shifted across the border via road, the Nation reported. On 30-12-20, Pakistan signed a joint appeal letter Tuesday seeking a $4.8 billion loan from international financial institutions for a Trans-Afghan railway line project with Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. The rail link would connect Pakistan and Uzbekistan via Afghanistan and later the Central Asian countries. Prime Minister Imran Khan signed the letter on behalf of Pakistan for the mega project, according to Abdul Razak Dawood, adviser to the prime minister on commerce and investment. "Today, the prime minister signed a letter for a joint approach with Afghanistan & Uzbekistan for asking international financial agencies to finance the railway from Pakistan to Uzbekistan through Afghanistan. This fits well with our vision for trade and connectivity through Afghanistan to the Central Asia Republics," Dawood tweeted. Afghanistan–Tajikistan rail service A multination rail link was planned between Afghanistan and Tajikistan in 2013. The Tajikistan section has been partly implemented in 2016. In 2018 a extension from Kolkhozobod in Tajikistan to the Afghan border town of Sher Khan Bandar in Kunduz Province was approved with construction expected to start that year. North–South