Chinese high-speed trains venture overseas

BEIJING - Parallel to the development of domestic high-speed rail, the Chinese government and rail enterprises are actively seeking customers overseas.

In a meeting with a trade ministers from the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) last week, Premier Li Keqiang thanked them for traveling by high-speed train from south China to Beijing, calling it a real "roadshow" for Chinese high-speed trains.

Thailand, an ASEAN member, plans a high-speed rail network in the next seven years to satisfy its business and tourism demands.

On a state visit to Thailand in early October, Li pushed China's willingness to participate in the project, stressing that "railway cooperation can become a new highlight in China-Thailand cooperation". An exhibition of Chinese high-speed rail also kicked off in Bangkok during his visit.

Not only Thailand, countries including the United States, Russia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brazil and Turkey are mooting their own high-speed rail projects. The Australian government has completed a feasibility study into a proposed high-speed rail route along its east coast.

With the world's longest operational line for bullet trains that run at more than 200 km per hour, China wants to take part in projects overseas.

"China's high-speed railway is advanced in technology, safe and reliable, and has a cost advantage," Premier Li told Australian Governor-General Quentin Bryce in a meeting in Beijing in mid-October.

Zhou Li, a senior director at China Railway Corporation, said China had learned by absorbing technology from various countries to create its own  technology.

By the end of September, China had nearly 10,000 km of high-speed railway lines in operation and had solved technical challenges on various complex geographical problems.