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在线翻译:
szdaily -> Opinion -> 
CRH — China’s link to the future
    2015-02-02  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

    Lei Xiangping

    lagon235@163.com

    IN 1978, when former Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping took the Shinkansen train for the first time in Japan, he lamented, “It goes as fast as the wind, and I begin to know what modernity is: China’s economy should speed up like it.” Since China had just reopened its doors back then, even an ordinary railway network had not yet been woven across the country — a high-speed railway network was a mere dream.

    However, in 2014, Chinese Premiere Li Keqiang told his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev, “Chinese high-speed railway technology is inexpensive and of good quality; Russia should buy it.” Things have changed: China has transformed from a country without a high-speed railway presence to an important leader in the industry in less than 10 years.

    China’s remarkable progress is representative of the old Chinese proverb, “san shi nian he dong, san shi nian he xi,” meaning “one’s destiny will change over time.” By absorbing imported technology and innovation and adapting them to China’s unique needs, China has developed a world-class high-speed railway standard, CRH, which has obtained international recognition.

    However, what is astonishing is that it was not until 2008, when the Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway was completed, that China had its first high-speed railway. Since then, China’s total high-speed railway mileage has exceeded 11,000 kilometers, 50 percent of the world’s total length. With a clear advantage in pricing and ripe experience in construction and operation, China’s high-speed rail technology and related fields have gradually earned global popularity.

    Now, many countries are pursuing cooperation with China. So far, leaders or delegates from more than 100 countries have test ridden on CRH trains, many of them giving high praise, and over 10 countries are negotiating at least 20 construction plans with China. In 2014, good news kept rolling in: the first China-standard high-speed railway linking Ankara and Istanbul in Turkey officially opened, the first China-backed high-speed railway in Latin America begin laying tracks in Venezuela, and Li Keqiang, hailed as China’s best salesman, expressed related cooperation intents with 12 countries.

    Obviously, high-speed rail has brought China into the spotlight. So how can China wield this influence responsibly? High-speed rail can be a new chance for China to reshape the international reputation of “made in China” and is a golden chance to promote trans-regional cooperation with regards to the global economy.

    For too long, “made in China” has been a synonym for low quality, low prices and outdated technology for decades while technology such as high-speed rail and cloud computing have been changing the world. With over 3,000 proprietary technologies registered and more than 5 percent of annual sales revenue invested in innovative R&D, China has a safe and trustworthy “package” for high-speed railway — from equipment export to technology transfer to operation consultancy to after-sales service — so that even GE, the world’s biggest equipment manufacturer, is seeking cooperation with China to promote CRH standard in America.

    

    High-speed rail is considered an effective tool to promote trans-regional cooperation. In 2013, President Xi Jinping put forward “the Silk Road Economic Belt” and “the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road” during his visits to Central Asia and Southeast Asia. In this “One Belt and One Road” notion, traffic connectivity plays a very important role in helping countries that are thirsty for infrastructure upgrade to build more high-speed lines that connect China and other parts of the world.

    As CRH standard becomes increasingly accepted, it can bring about a brand-new future, both for China and the world.

    (The author is an editor with the News Desk at China Radio International.)

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