China’s Xiang-Pu Railway to Be of Military Importance – Hong Kong Paper

Text of report by Hong Kong newspaper Wen Wei Po website on 24 November, subheadings as received

[Dispatch dated 23 November by reporters Chen Cho-tong and Mi Nan from WWP News Centre on West Shore of the Taiwan Strait in Putian: "Xiang-Pu Railway Shows a Taiwan-Related Strategy"]

All-round work has started today in Fujian on the Xiang (Xiangtang, Jiangxi) -Pu (Putian, Fujian) Railway, the first high- speed railway in Fujian linked to the great Beijing-Jiujiang Railway. According to its design, the railway in the future will also be linked to the new Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway through the Chang (Nanchang)-Jiu (Jiujiang) and Wu (Wuhan)-Jiu (Jiujiang) lines. Some experts say that, as the Xiang-Pu Railway will be connected with Beijing through China’s two fastest artery railways, an initial form of the contemplated Beijing-Taiwan speedy passageway has actually appeared.

An Initial Form of the Beijing-Taiwan Speedy Passageway

Yuan Jingui, secretary of the Putian City CCP Committee, told this paper that the terminal point of the Xiang-Pu Railway in Fujian is Meizhou Bay, only 72 nautical miles from the Taichung port of Taiwan. Also, this is a coastal area in Fujian where Taiwan investments are concentrated. Because of this, he said, the railway’s strategic importance with regard to Taiwan is drawing people’s attention. Some believe that starting the work on the Xiang- Pu Railway signifies that the mainland portion of the Beijing- Taiwan speedy passageway has entered the stage of final construction, he added.

Yuan Jingui explained as follows: The national expressway programme of the Ministry of Communications contains an expressway from Beijing to Taipei. The Fujian Provincial Department of Communications has officially started to study the opportune time for building the Beijing-Taiwan speedy passageway and to evaluate the options of the route. In 2006, at Fujian’s request, Qinghua University worked out a “Research Report on the Opportune Time for Building the Beijing-Taipei Expressway” and proposed a middle-line scheme: The passageway goes from Meizhou Island of Putian to Taichung. During the “two sessions” [the sessions of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference] this year, Fujian deputies Zhan Yi and Xu Jinhe made a suggestion to build a Beijing-Taiwan High Speed Railway with Putian as the basic point.

According to Yuan Jingui, a sea passageway linking Putian and Taichung will be the best route for economic and trade exchanges between the two sides of the Strait. After the completion of the Xiang-Pu Railway, it will take only 11 hours to go from Putian to Beijing. This railway route has the shortest distance and thus requires the least investment, compared with other routes for building the railway. It is also the best choice for building the Beijing-Taiwan speedy passageway.

Some experts view this railway from a military perspective. They say that this railway will improve the East China railway network and form a strategic link between coastal Fujian and the heartland. It will raise to a great extent the southeast coastal areas’ military-coordination and logistic-support capabilities, thereby enabling the areas to provide powerful support for military actions in the future.

Improving East China Railway Network

As we understand it, Putian City has recently formed a “Leading Group for the Middle-Line Scheme of the Beijing-Taiwan Speedy Passageway.” Professor Wu Zhiming, director of the Feasibility Study Centre for Taiwan Strait Tunnel of the Research Institute for 21st Century Development at Qinghua University, was invited to conduct an on-the-spot investigation in Putian. Professor Wu supports the middle-line scheme. Meanwhile, Putian City has reserved some land near the branch line of the Xiang-Pu Railway at the Meizhou port for building the Beijing-Taiwan speedy passageway.

Originally published by Wen Wei Po website, Hong Kong, in Chinese 24 Nov 07.

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