On Dec. 23, 2014, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with visiting Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and showed China's determination to seek opportunities for mutual development, undisturbed by several outbreaks of political unrest in Thailand. Xi and Prayuth reached consensus on many issues during their meeting.

Xi said that China will continue to respect and support Thailand's efforts to achieve political stability, economic progress, and well-being for the Thai people. Xi previously met with Prayuth and expressed his hope to implement Sino-Thai cooperation during the APEC meeting in Beijing. Xi observed that bilateral cooperation has made new progress, especially the breakthrough on railway cooperation since his last meeting with Prayuth more than a month ago. "I am satisfied with all this progress," Xi said.

Xi intends to inspire common aspirations of "China and Thailand being the members of one family" and promote the Sino-Thai cooperation on railway to cement the ties between China and Thailand. These initiatives will benefit both peoples and help to fuel the rise of China and Thailand through the rapid regional growth spurred by China' s initiatives on the Silk Road Economic Belt and Maritime Silk Road in the 21st Century.

The friendly exchanges between the two peoples date back to more than two thousand years ago. When Chinese boatmen were killed by Thai gangsters in the Mekong region in 2011 the governments and the police of both countries kept in close touch with other and brought the criminals involved to justice. The Sino-Thai bond has remained strong despite the killings.

Xi Jinping pays close attention to the Sino-Thai project on railway cooperation. Most of Thailand's railways were built before WWII and Thailand has seen frequent railway accidents. Trains in Thailand often travel at speeds lower than 50 kilometers per hour and on certain routes the maximum speed is less than 15 kilometers per hour. The Sino-Thai MoU on railway cooperation will allow China to invest in two dual-track rail lines in Thailand that will span more than 800 kilometres.

 Xi has observed that China is actively involved in preserving and building peace. He adds that China expects to work with Thailand to deepen mutually-beneficial cooperation among Asian countries and build a closer China-ASEAN community of common fate. Prayuth said that China and Thailand should adhere to the principle of peaceful coexistence and mutually-beneficial cooperation.

Pragmatic cooperation can advance on the basis of complementing each other's strengths. Cooperation between China and Thailand offers a lead to the other ASEAN countries, says Xi, urging the two sides to press forward with cooperation on areas including railway and agriculture so as to further promote regional connectivity.

This article was edited and translated from 《习大大铺就中泰“新路径”》,source: Youth.cn