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'Game changer': Laos opens Chinese-built railway line
The 414-kilometre (260-mile) route took five years to construct under China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative.
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This frame grab from Lao National TV video footage taken on October 16, 2021 via AFPTV shows the Lane Xang bullet train at the Vientiane Railway Station in Vientiane. (AFP/STR/Lao National TV)
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sleek red, blue and white bullet train departed a new Vientiane station Friday signalling the opening of Laos' $6 billion Chinese-built railway -- a project tangled in debt and high hopes of an economic boost.
The 414-kilometre (260-mile) route took five years to construct under China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative.
Laos President Thongloun Sisoulith heralded a "new era of modern infrastructure development" for his country.
"I am proud that the dreams of Lao people have come true," he said at the opening ceremony Friday afternoon.
The railway will connect the Chinese city of Kunming to the Laotian capital Vientiane, with grand plans for high-speed rail to ultimately snake down through Thailand and Malaysia to Singapore.
Analysts have acknowledged a potential economic lift, but have asked how infrastructure-poor Laos will pay its $1.06 billion debt liability and whether it is ready to exploit the state-of-the-art transport system.
The Laos government also took out a $480 million loan from the Export-Import Bank of China to cover two-thirds of its equity stake, bringing its total share of debt to $1.54 billion.
