On 13 January 2021, the city of Chengdu (China, Sichuan province) witnessed the official launch of the world’s first technical prototype of a high-speed magnetic levitation (Maglev) train using high-temperature superconductivity, as well as a track line to test the new train. The prototype has been developed using the original technologies of the Southwest Jiaotong University (SWJU, an OSJD affiliated enterprise).

In 2021, the ‘Railways of the World’ journal, which was founded by the Russian Railways OJSC, celebrates 2 significant events: 60 years since the foundation and the beginning of publication, as well as 50 years since the moment the journal assumed the current masthead.

Two largest private rail freight operators in Europe, Lineas (Belgium) and PCC Intermodal (Germany/Poland), have increased the frequency of their regular train connections between Belgium and Poland. Starting from 1 February 2021, the Poland Xpress connecting Antwerp and Poznan travels five times per week instead of three times per week.

Freight company LTG Cargo, part of the railway group Lietuvos Geležinkeliai (LTG), has established a subsidiary in Ukraine – LTG Cargo Ukraine.

The new high speed train , KTX - Eum, of KORAIL, the Railroad Corporation of the Republic of Korea made its commercial debut on 5 January 2021.

On 9 February 2021, the first container train arrived at the Freight Village Vorsino terminal in the Kaluga region, following from Turkey via the Baku-Tbilisi- Kars (BTK) international railway line.

The Byelorussian Railway and Stadler Minsk have begun a set of tests and trials of the first interregional five-carriage business class EPM electric train. The train is fresh out of the gate of the Stadler Minsk manufacturing facility in Fanipole, Republic of Belarus.

The cooperation agreement was signed by Oleg Belozyerov, General Director – Chairman of the Board of Russian Railways OJSC, and Vladimir Morozov, Head of Byelorussian Railway, on 3 February 2021 in a videoconferencing mode.

On 10 February 2020, a consultative meeting was held on Lao People’s Democratic Republic joining the Organisation for Co-Operation between Railways. The Lao PDR delegation was headed by Mr. Viengsavath Siphandone, Vice Minister, Ministry of Public Works and Transport, and Mr. Miroslaw Antonowicz, Chairman of the OSJD Committee, was head of the OSJD Committee delegation.

On 23 December 2020, following the threeyear intensive work, the world’s first high-speed freight train with a speed of 350 km/h rolled off the assembly line of the rolling stock plant in Tangshan, China. The train was developed by a research team led by CRRC Tangshan Co., Ltd. – a company specializing in the production of railway rolling stock. As compared to a high-speed passenger train, this train is significantly different in appearance - each section has two side loading doors of 2.9 meters wide, which provides convenient loading/unloading of goods.