Thailand's deputy Prime Minister Tanasak Patimapragorn has revealed that the construction of a high speed railway connecting China and Thailand would begin by the end of this year. He made this announcement to Chinese media during the recent 12^th China-ASEAN Expo, where Thailand was the 'Country of Honor.'

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Although this is not the first indication that construction of the China-Thailand railway will get underway at the end of this year, it is the first time a top official from either nation has confirmed this. Due to disagreements between both nations over the design and cost of the project, the construction has been delayed by about nine months.

Work on the 873 kilometers standard gauge dual-track rail project had been scheduled to commence in October after earlier delays. However, a disagreement over the proposed cost of the project forced it to be postponed further by two months.

Last week, the China-Thailand Joint Committee on Railway Cooperation met in Bangkok to discuss a feasibility report for the first phase of the railway line. Despite reaching common ground on some issues, they postponed talks on the design and funding of the project until October. China is expected to submit a second feasibility report ahead of the committee's meeting next month.

According to Patimapragorn, the China-Thailand railway line, which will run from Yunan Province through Laos to Thailand's Rayong province, would improve the transportation of people and goods in the region. Experts say it would also increase the number of Chinese tourists who visit Thailand annually. When the railway comes into operation in 2018, it is expected to be considerably cheaper than air transportation.

This year marks the 40^th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Thailand. There are speculations that Thailand's leadership want to mark the milestone by aligning the commencement of the railway construction with the country's National Day on Dec. 2^nd.

TagsChina-Thailand Railway, 12th China-ASEAN Expo, China-Thailand Joint Committee on Railway Cooperation, 40th Anniversary China-Thailand Diplomatic Ties