Rail routes: Thailand in talks with Japan
Like China, Japan has substantial economic interests in the region
BANGKOK:
Thailand is talking to Japan with a view to building three rail routes in the Southeast Asian country and modernise its rail network. Thailand wants three new lines connecting the capital, Bangkok, with cities in the east, west, north and northeast. The country has proposed that Japan build two separate east-west lines, one from Mae Sot at the Myanmar border to Mukdahan and another connecting Kanchanaburi with the industrialised province of Rayong. A third route would run from Bangkok to the northern city of Chiang Mai. The three routes combined would cover roughly 1,500km. Japan has long been Thailand’s biggest investor, mainly in car manufacturing and high-tech industries. Like China, Japan has substantial economic interests in the region, in particular, Vietnam, Myanmar and Thailand.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 21st, 2014.
Thailand is talking to Japan with a view to building three rail routes in the Southeast Asian country and modernise its rail network. Thailand wants three new lines connecting the capital, Bangkok, with cities in the east, west, north and northeast. The country has proposed that Japan build two separate east-west lines, one from Mae Sot at the Myanmar border to Mukdahan and another connecting Kanchanaburi with the industrialised province of Rayong. A third route would run from Bangkok to the northern city of Chiang Mai. The three routes combined would cover roughly 1,500km. Japan has long been Thailand’s biggest investor, mainly in car manufacturing and high-tech industries. Like China, Japan has substantial economic interests in the region, in particular, Vietnam, Myanmar and Thailand.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 21st, 2014.