China and Vietnam will sign new agreements to boost rail links and agricultural trade

China and Vietnam are expected to sign agreements to boost rail links and agricultural trade during Chinese Premier Li Qiang's visit to Hanoi this weekend, according to two people with knowledge of the plans.

The current main railway line between China and Vietnam relies on a track linking Kunming, Hanoi and Haiphong. Built by the French during their colonization of Vietnam more than a hundred years ago, the railway is still in use in Vietnam, while the Chinese portion has been replaced by high-speed rail.

Mistrust between China and Vietnam has long hampered progress on rail links, resulting in incompatible tracks and passengers and goods having to change trains at the border, hampering booming trade flows between the two countries.

In recent months, economic considerations appear to have trumped security at land borders. In the first three quarters of this year, trade between the two countries totaled $148.2 billion, up 21 percent from the same period last year.

Both countries have repeatedly expressed their intention to strengthen rail links, but have yet to publish specific plans and estimated costs. In August this year, during the visit of General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President Su Lin to Beijing, China and Vietnam signed a document on the planning and feasibility study of standardized railway lines.

In addition to the Kunming-Haiphong line, the two countries plan to upgrade another line from Guangxi to Hanoi and possibly build a new line connecting Shenzhen and Haiphong.

It is unclear how many agreements will be signed, but sources say at least a dozen are under discussion. The two countries are expected to sign a new agreement on survey activities, as well as agreements on payment systems and customs procedures, the sources said.

According to the preliminary arrangement of the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry, Li Qiang will meet with Su Lin on Saturday (12), and meet with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Thien on Sunday morning before attending the signing ceremony of cooperation documents.