China may invest in Russia's first high-speed railway

A CRH train that runs on the Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway leaves Tianjin South Railway Station in North China's Tianjin, June 30, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

The rail deal is only part of China's major investment projects in Russia, as the countries move closer in translating their comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination into more practical cooperation, especially in areas of infrastructure construction.

China Development Bank confirmed in April last year its plan to invest $5 billion in infrastructure projects in Russia's Far East.

China has embarked on a program to expand its railway network, with plans to lay thousands of kilometers of track on various continents in the coming years.

China and Thailand have signed an agreement to build high-speed tracks and Chinese firms are also interested in joining the bidding for a high-speed line between Malaysia and Singapore, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi revealed Saturday while attending the annual Boao Forum for Asia conference in Hainan province.

China in May 2014 signed a deal worth $3.8 billion to build a rail linking Kenya's Mombasa and Nairobi, which is actually the first phase of a line that will eventually connect the East African countries including Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan.

China, Brazil and Peru agreed last July to build a railway that runs across the South American continent, which is aimed at linking the Brazilian Atlantic coast with the Peruvian Pacific coast.