China ready to work with Malaysia to make ECRL a road to prosperity, happiness -- Chinese premier

Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers a speech at the groundbreaking ceremony for the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) Gombak Integrated Terminal Station in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, June 19, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhang Ling)

KUALA LUMPUR, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang said Wednesday that China is ready to work hand in hand with Malaysia to make the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) a path to prosperity and happiness that truly delivers for the people.

He made the remarks when attending the groundbreaking ceremony for ECRL Gombak Integrated Terminal Station with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Both leaders delivered a speech at the event.

At first, Li expressed appreciation to the hard-working builders from both sides.

Noting that the ECRL is a flagship project of China-Malaysia high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, Li expressed his belief that with the joint efforts of both sides, the construction of the project will be high-quality, efficient, safe, and reliable, making the railway a model of excellence, and a fine example of Belt and Road cooperation.

Li said the ECRL will not only serve as a transportation artery in Malaysia, but also play an important role in promoting development, creating employment and improving people's livelihood.

China will make active efforts with Malaysia to explore ways to connect the ECRL with the China-Laos and China-Thailand railways to better advance the construction of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, thereby enhancing regional connectivity and deepening the development of the ASEAN Community, Li said.

For his part, Anwar said that the ECRL project, which connects the east and west coasts of Malaysia, is of great significance to promoting Malaysia's economic and social development.

He thanked Chinese and Malaysian companies for their cooperation in advancing this important project, and voiced confidence that with the joint efforts of both sides and on the strength of "China speed" and advanced technology, the ECRL will be completed as soon as possible, injecting strong impetus into the development of Malaysia and regional countries.

The two leaders jointly pushed the lever to officially kick off the construction of the Gombak station.

The Malaysia ECRL stretches 665 km, starting from Kota Bharu in the north, and heading south to Kuantan before turning westward to Port Klang. It is the largest standalone transportation infrastructure project undertaken by Chinese enterprises overseas.