China’s European high-speed rail project hailed as a ‘miracle’

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic hailed Chinese companies working on building a high-speed rail line linking Belgrade with Budapest, Hungary, as a “miracle” as a new high-speed train was unveiled in the Serbian capital on Friday.

The rail network is part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative in Europe, a massive plan unveiled by the Chinese government in 2013 to develop infrastructure across swathes of Asia, East Africa and Eastern Europe that critics say is an attempt to greatly increase Beijing’s influence.

China has been committed to strengthening ties with Serbia and Hungary, and President Xi Jinping visited both countries along with France during his European tour in May. Both Serbia and Hungary have good relations with China’s main ally, Russia, which is also a member of NATO and the European Union.

The train, which was unveiled at Zemun station on Friday, can travel at a maximum speed of 200 kph (124 mph) and has seating for 250 people, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua.

Prime Minister Vucic announced at the event that Serbia had ordered five trains from China Railway Corporation, which will be used on the Belgrade-Budapest railway currently under construction.

He commented: “According to the contract, the last train is scheduled to arrive on December 31, 2025. Testing of the Belgrade-Subotica line will take place in September, no later than December 1. If the line is completed by then, and we will complete it, you will be riding on the Belgrade-Subotica line.”

Regarding the engineering companies involved in the construction of the railway line, Vucic added: “I especially want to thank the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), which is probably the best company that has ever done something in Serbia. The company is a miracle, and the way people work is amazing.”

Chinese builders have already completed a rail line connecting Belgrade with Novi Sad, Serbia’s second-largest city, and plan to extend it to Subotica, near the Hungarian border, by December. When complete, the Belgrade-Budapest railway, which several Chinese companies are helping to build, will be 217 miles long.

Prime Minister Vucic on Friday also expressed hope that Serbia would eventually start manufacturing its own trains, saying: “We import the best quality and most beautiful trains. I hope that soon we will be able to manufacture our own trains. That is very important for Serbia’s growth.”

According to Statista, China’s high-speed rail network will stretch to 25,000 miles in 2021, and 2.3 billion passengers traveled on its lines in 2019, roughly 63% of all passenger rail travel in China.

Plans for high-speed rail have been revived in recent years, with construction beginning in January on a 218-mile line connecting Las Vegas, Nevada, with Southern California. In April, President Joe Biden approved a proposed 240 mph line connecting Houston and Dallas, Texas, as well as a line connecting Dallas and Fort Worth.