中国和泰国签订铁路项目谅解备忘录

 　　Reporter:

　　The documents will see China invest in a pair of rail lines connecting northeast Thailand with Bangkok and the Thai port city of Rayong to the south of Bangkok.

　　The two routes, which will total 870 kilometers, will later connect with the planned China-Laos railway.

　　The project in Thailand is worth an estimated 10.6 billion U.S. dollars.

　　Trains on the line are expected to run at over 3-times their current speeds.

　　中国和泰国签订铁路项目谅解备忘录

　　Professor Thitinan Pongsudhirak is the Director of the Institute of Security and International Studies at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

　　"Thailand wants to have more infrastructure¹ development and certainly wants to have a role in China's growing influence in Asia, ASEAN and especially in mainland Southeast Asia. This railway project is really ambitious. It will connect southern China to the eastern sea border of Thailand. If it goes ahead, we will see strategic railway network that link southern China to golf of Thailand which is a link to the South China Sea and so on."

　　The project is part of a broader Chinese initiative to build a 3-thousand kilometer-long high-speed rail link from Yunnan's capital Kunming to Singapore, which would see the line pass through Laos, Thailand and Malaysia.

　　The ambitious plan is part of Chinese President Xi Jinping's attempt to create a 21st century Silk Road.

　　Professor Yang Baojun from Thailand's Thammasat University says the joint² rail project should go a long way toward helping³ the Chinese government achieve its goal.

　　"Thailand is the transport hub of Southeast Asia, especially in maritime⁴ transportation. As such, the project has to be designed based on the railway capabilities⁵ of Thailand. It should contribute to the economic and transportation development of the country. China is now working to promote the one road and one belt initiatives, so participating in Thailand's infrastructure construction will have a significant impact on China's larger plans."

　　Aside from the railway project, Li Keqiang is also expected to oversee⁶ the signing of a number of agreements with the Thai government connected to agriculture.

　　Thailand is one of the largest rice producing countries in Asia.

　　For CRI, I'm Liu Yan.

1 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

2 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

3 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

4 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

5 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。