Li Keqiang and trans-Eurasian Railroads
- By Heiko Khoo
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E-mail China.org.cn, October 27, 2014
In the 19th century, steam powered railways were pivotal to the expansion of British and world capitalism. When, in 1850, Karl Marx saw an electric train in a London toyshop he was overjoyed. He told his friend, Wilhelm Liebknecht:
"Now the problem is solved - the consequences are indefinable. In the wake of the economic revolution the political must necessarily follow, for the latter is only the expression of the former."
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A China Railways CRH2C (left) and a China Railways CRH3C (right) train in Tianjin. |
However, over four decades later Liebknecht bemoaned the fact that there was not a single electric railway line in operation.
Railways were also at the heart of Premier Li Keqiang's recent visit to Europe. High-speed railway investment exposes "the China difference," namely, its capacity to accurately develop and realize its long-term plans for economic investment and growth. In this way China has overtaken the richest capitalist countries in the high-speed rail sector and this network is now larger than the rest of the world combined.
Global interconnectivity has raced ahead of the boundaries and limitations of nation states. Modern communications integrate the international process of design, production and consumption of commodities into an organic whole. The virtual interactions that bind together material production, consumption and distribution, require global logistics. And a fundamental feature of the development of the productive forces is the conquest of distance and time, which, for the Eurasian landmass, inevitably means the expansion of railways both for freight and human transport.
The recent world economic crisis has acted as a drag on international railway development because, as world trade suffered, shipping costs fell dramatically. Therefore railroad investments in many countries declined as a consequence of this maritime competition. However, in contrast, the global economic crisis was the signal for China to expand and accelerate the breadth and depth of its railroad investments, nationally and internationally. China's accumulated expertise and technical experience has global significance. Its capacity to build high-speed networks rapidly and in adverse conditions is reflected in the sweeping scope of the projects in development and being negotiated.
Plans to develop the interior of China have been combined with expansion of its freight network to Europe. Trains from Chongqing to Duisburg in Germany, the world's largest inland harbor, have been in operation since April this year and, from Oct. 30, they will also run from Changsha in Hunan. Freight on these routes takes between 12 -16 days compared to 50-60 days by sea. In this way, developing the central and western areas of China is integrated with developing Eurasian railway networks as the foundation for the New Silk Road.
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