China has announced approval for infrastructure projects in mainland Southeast Asia at this year’s round of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summits. Beijing’s announcement on Thursday indicated that Belt and Road initiative is back on agenda after almost three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, VOA News reported.
The infrastructure projects announced by China include a $1.6 billion expressway to be developed from Phnom Penh to Bavet at the Cambodian – Vietnamese border. In addition, Beijing announced support for a rail link between Phnom Penh, Bangkok and Vientiane, from where a high-speed rail link has already been made into China, as per the VOA News report.
