当中国国家主席习近平于2013年提出“一带一路”倡议时，他是分开两个阶段阐述陆地上的丝绸之路与海上丝绸之路。第一个阶段是在9月出访哈萨克时提出复兴历史上的“陆上丝绸之路”，而在10月访问印尼时则提出第二阶段的“海上丝绸之路”。
为什么分为“陆上”和“海上”？这其中又有什么异同？原来陆上丝绸之路是于两千年前由西汉（公元前202年至公元8年）汉武帝派遣张骞出使西域，从长安出发，经过河西走廊到达中亚国家，再进入地中海，在罗马是为终点，全长6440公里，昔日称为“陆上丝绸之路”，如今则统称为“大陆桥”。
至于第二阶段的“丝绸之路”由谁开辟虽然有一定的争议，但比较客观和具有历史根据的是在唐朝时的一位高僧义净法师（635-713）开拓的第一条航海路线图。
（一）义净法师是在公元671年（唐太宗在位年代）得到州官冯孝全的资助，于11月从番禺（今广州）乘搭波斯商船抵达泰南洛坤和吉打羯荼，旋经马六甲海峡进入末罗瑜（印尼占碑），而后抵达印度，并在各处圣地朝礼。
公元685年，义净法师乘船回到番禺，又于同年11月再赴古佛逝国（苏门答腊）取经，以巨港（Palembang）为王都。公元695年，义净法师告别古佛逝国回到洛阳，被武则天皇帝迎于东门外。
义净法师是与法显法师（334-420）及唐玄奘（602-664）（西游记中的唐三藏）在后来被誉为中国三大著名高僧。
专门研究义净法师历史的邓鸿瑞博士（原澳洲大学电机工程博士，后任教于美国波多黎谷理工大学电机工程系教授，如今已退休，专研佛法）在其著作《寻找义净大师的足迹》中这样说：在唐代，羯荼古国已是一个重要的海港，提供来自中国、印度及阿拉伯国家的船只进行贸易。
旋后，来自理大的考古学者在羯荼古国遗址挖掘时，找到不少唐宋元时期的各类文物。
羯荼帝国位于今时吉打的布秧谷，离亚罗士打西南50公里的地区，有400平方公里。已出土87所古建筑，其中60 所是庙宇。政府也已在这个地点建了一座布秧河谷考古博物馆。
当年在吉打逗留约半年的义净法师也留下他的历史踪迹。
中国除了于2023年在济南举行“义净文化论坛”外，我国团结部也将在7月11日与中国联办“义净法师国际大会”。若能成事，将是马来西亚回佛对话的新开端，必然能从历史文物和记录中印证华巫印族在很早的时候已是一起生活在这块土地上。因此任何鼓吹种族主义的政客如果能从布秧谷中找到历史的印记，肯定不会对不同的种族存有不同的偏见，也不会贸然认为一向以来这是属于单一种族的国家。
从唐朝（618-907）建国的289年中，东南亚基本上是一个印度化的国家，例如柬埔寨（扶南）、越南（占婆）、北大年（狼牙修）（今属泰国领土）及吉打羯荼，及后出现在印尼的是室利佛逝（三佛齐）（其中9世纪以来，室利佛逝迁都占碑（Jambi），又将末罗瑜（Melayu）王国占有。末罗瑜在后来成为马来人的专用名词）、中爪哇（刹朗特拉王朝）、满者伯夷王朝及在爪哇的玛打萳王朝等。
这些印度化的国家到了13世纪（1207年）已走向没落。
在这之后，马来亚兴起信奉回教的潮流，那就是在1402年由拜里米苏拉（Parameswara）在马六甲所创立的马六甲王朝。
事缘在14世纪末，有一位来自巨港的王子拜里米苏拉因不堪满者伯夷（苏门答腊国王）的压迫（他因娶了国王的女儿为妻），终于兵戎相见。在战败后，拜里米苏拉逃到新加坡（单马锡）立足，后又被暹罗军驱赶。辗转来到马六甲，一个独立王朝就在马六甲建立起来（1403年）。
他原是印度教的教徒，在改信回教后，改称伊斯干陀沙。就这样，回教进入了东南亚。为求中国的保护，拜里米苏拉在1405年抵达南京（金陵），确定了马中的友好关系。而马来亚也在日后成为回教的主要地盘，取代了印度教，但南来的华人带来了佛教和道教也就分别在各地零星的保存下来。
（二）马来亚从印度化演变成回教国家后，与中国的友好关系并没有改变。
1405年，明成祖（朱元璋第四公子）朱棣在政变中取得大权后，对郑和恩宠有加，因郑和协助朱棣在乱局中登位有功，乃在1404年将其原名马三保改名为郑和。从此这个人成为历史上家喻户晓的大人物。
马三宝本只是一名太监，后来被尊称为“三保太监”。
也是在这一年（1405年），在获得御准下，郑和率领7千余名军人，带着皇帝的诏书和大量的黄金、绵帛、瓷器等文物分成62艘大木舰从刘家港（江苏太仓县刘河口）出发，经过福建沿南海行。先到占城（越南南部），又陆续到达南洋和印度洋沿岸各国。每到一国，郑和就宣示明朝皇帝的诏书，以示中国的伟大。
郑和的航海事业终于1433年，前后28年。这期间，郑和一共航海7次，其中5次经过马六甲海峡。除了有庞大的武装外，足迹也是远达非洲的东岸。
根据历史学家林莲在1961年出版的《中国历史讲话》中有一段是这样描述郑和之行的：
“郑和7次航海，前后经过36个国家，他的工作是艰巨的，不但要和惊涛骇浪作战，而且在必要时还得使用武力和敌对的力量周旋。
郑和的出使西洋也大大地开拓了中国在印度洋和南洋群岛的市场。他的航海不仅是中国历史上空前的壮举，而且是世界航海史上的伟大行动。”
（正是印度洋和南中国海的重要战略地位，今天已成为美国压制和遏制中国军力崛起的核心地带）
即便郑和比哥伦布发现新大陆要早了80年，但有人质问为何中国没有占有外面的任何土地，只是突显国威，而花费的经费更是无从计算，是不是中国没有侵略的野心；加上中国人的思想狭隘与过于自信，没有动过扩大领土的念头？
及至后来，也有后人不甚明白，西方国家侵略其他国家而被指“政治正确”，带来文明和发展；反之，中国并没有占有任何的土地，却在后来蒙受百年的屈辱。
有人因此争议说，如果中国在郑和时代就捷足先登拿下未开垦的土地带入文明和发展，那么世界肯定不会是今天这个样子，也不会突显哥伦布的重要性。
哥伦布（Christopher Columbus）（1451-1506）出生于意大利，在1492年被西班牙女王批准出使印度和中国。1493年无功而返。
1496年又回到西班牙，直到第四次出航才落脚在美洲。就这样，他发现了美洲新大陆，也就是后来的美国。这是西方殖民地拓展史上最重要的一页，相比之下，中国封建王朝则是望尘莫及。
（三）可惜中国在未能意识到古老的封建思想对中国的突破性发展是有阻力的，甚至是不利的。比如中国历代的王朝思想是可以用八个字来概括的，即“普天之下，莫非王土”。这种典型的反世界潮流的思想终于为此付出惨痛的代价。
既然中国帝王认为世界上所有的土地是皇帝的，为何又对外敌的入侵有所担心？
为阻止匈奴的入侵，在秦代时期修建了万里长城，以阻止匈奴来犯。基本上是切割外敌的入侵（但后来又证明无法阻止蒙古人的入侵建立元朝，及满洲人的入侵建立清朝，实在是对封建王朝最大的讽刺），但在那个年代，北方只有在后来纳入中国民族的匈奴和其它少数民族。反而是中国在封建王朝时代犯下最严重的错误，那就是在明清两个朝代竟实施400年的海禁，与外界隔离，又如何能知天下事？
如明朝在1371年至1567年的196年实施海禁，主要目的是防止倭寇入侵，藉此切断了海路让小日本无法得逞。
同样的，到了清朝时代，也在1655年至1840年实施海禁，一共是185年。
明清两朝的海禁同是防止外敌入侵，但防范得了吗？如今回想起来，只觉得封建王朝帝王思想的愚蠢与落后，竟不知天外有天，国外有国。同时最严重的是，这个世界有70%是海洋，也只有30%是陆地，而陆地扣除南极和北极、沙漠及无人烟的大丛林外，所留下的空间也剩下不多。
最严重的是，当中国禁止鸦片由英输入原本是天经地义的正义行动，以阻止鸦片荼毒人民。但英商反而强词夺理，指责中方损害英商利益，在本身没有充足的武装下，也就在1840年爆发鸦片战争。这一仗，清廷大败，除了割地赔偿，将香港岛割予英国外，英国也迫使中国开放广州、厦门、福州、宁波、上海五处为通商口岸。
从那个时候起，中国人注定成为悲剧人物，在1860年第二次鸦片战争中，圆明园不但被焚毁，而且又将九龙半岛割让给英国。
及后在1894年又爆发甲午战争，清廷再一败涂地，台湾也被日本占有。在此之后，清廷痛定思痛，仿效日本推行洋务运动（日本的明治维新，起于1858年，而在1889年结束，造就了日本成为军事强国。而清廷的洋务运动起于第二次鸦片战争的1861年，终结1895年，因这一年的甲午战争清廷的军舰全部覆没），清廷的西颦东效，在1900年义和团运动中，再被八国联军打得落花流水。中国人至此已陷入第一次世界大战（1914-1918）的泥潭，其结果又是被美苏英瓜分利益。中国的辛亥革命（1911年）也没有给中国带来实质上的好处，反而形成军阀割据，直到1949年国共战争结束，才分出胜负。
在解放后的中国是一穷二白，又不幸碰上朝鲜战争，也打乱了中国解放台湾的战略，直到1976年结束文革后，中国才又进入一个和平建设的年代。
在这个过程中，我们看到在1916年时，第一座欧亚大陆桥由俄罗斯承建，从海参崴到哈尔滨，再通向莫斯科和德国等国家，但这是苏联的工程，与中国无关。
直到1990年， 才有了第二座欧亚大陆桥的出现，从江苏的连云港到俄罗斯及德国，在1992年正式通车，展示了中国的列车成就。
接着，在改革开放的40年间（1978-2018），中国已脱胎换骨，成为另一个新中国，这也涉及中国列车的改善进入规划期和调整期。在中国国内方面，开始于1997年到2007年的规划，总共有六次对列车大提速。在规划中，将当前的四纵四横发展成八纵八横，第一阶段已在2020年提前完成；而第二阶段将在2030年完成。到了那个时候，中国国内的列车不但四通八达，时速也大大提升成为名副其实的“高铁”。
至于与欧洲交接的中欧班列，更是中国人的骄傲，因为这是打进美国后院的最重要的突破。自从2016年挂起中欧班列招牌以来，货运列车已川行中国各大城市和港口，也已经通达欧洲22个国家的160个城市。中国希望到了2035年，它将成为国际领先列车的冠军。对此，中国相信未来的高铁将照亮人类前进的道路。
中欧班列是通过货运列车进入欧洲，其收费不仅比海运和空运便宜，而且更加环保，列车所产生的二氧化碳排量只有4%。
按照高铁的标准，在中国国内，时速超过200公里的才可被称为“高铁”，但现代的世界要求更高，时速350公里的高铁也出现了。高铁改变了中国，也改变了世界的交通网络。
这是一个充满活力的世界，但只有和平才能让我们看到未来，战争则是世界的末日。
在结束之前，我对于“一带一路”有几点补充的意见：
其一，在清朝时代对来自西方的玩意儿是没有兴趣的，比如在1876年英国怡和洋行在上海到吴淞建了一条长14.5公里的列车，但在1877年被清廷买下而销毁，简直是不可思议。
直到1905年中国才出现第一架由中国人建造的列车，从北京到湖南张家界，全长222公里，在1908年通车。这个人就是后来扬名于世界的詹天佑工程师，毕业于牛津大学。
但在1937年爆发中日战争，严重地破坏了铁道，只剩下3793公里可运行。而在战后（1945年）又爆发国共内战，更多的铁路被荒废与捣毁。
到了1949年解放后才有8278公里的列车可运行。
到了1980年全国铁道达49940公里；而到了1990年，已增至66428公里。这印证了在改革开放下，中国正大步前进。
在1994年时，中国的列车时速只有每小时48公里。但到了1998年，秦皇岛与沈阳做出试验，证明国产高铁可行，在2003年成功出台时速超过200公里的高铁。
2016年，挂起了“中欧班列”，显然中国货运列车已进入了美国的后院。截至今天，货运额已超过2千亿美元。自通欧以来，已开行4万列次。
在中国国内，载客及货运列车也已发展到23条，下来中国关注的是如何完成泛亚铁路？
按照原计划，隆新高铁将在2018年动工，预计2026年通车，全长327.7公里，其中有15公里是通过隧道进入新加坡。
当时政府并未公布造价，因为有关工程尚未招标，不知花落谁家？最大的竞争者是中国和日本。一般估计，造价不少于1000亿令吉。
不幸的，在2018年的大选换上希盟的马哈迪上台，他宣布取消隆新高铁，因马方承受不起其巨额造价。当时有人估计大概耗资1010亿令吉。
随着高铁的终止，马方须赔偿新加坡3亿余令吉。
与此同时，马哈迪政府也在同一时候宣布取消中国承建的三条气油管，一是多元石油产品输送管（MPP）、二是沙巴天然气输送管（TSGP）和三是由马六甲连接至柔佛的油炼厂管道，总额高达18亿美元。
虽然在安华时期有人提出重新启动隆新高铁，且将其延长至泰国曼谷，但造价就不知多少了。而政府也迟迟没有动静。
据知，中国政府现只剩下的大工程是东铁的建造（估计耗资400亿令吉）。
回想1994年槟城建造第二大桥时，时任首相阿都拉就向中国总理温家宝达成协议，中方贷出8亿美元共建大桥，而总造价是45亿令吉。
什么时候“一带一路”才能完成整体规划？我们也正期待着。
When China President Xi Jinping proposed the Belt and Road Initiative
in 2013, he elaborated on the land Silk Road and the maritime Silk Road in two
stages. The first stage was to propose the revival of the historical "Land
Silk Road" when visiting Kazakhstan in September, and the second stage of
the "Maritime Silk Road" was proposed during the visit to Indonesia
in October.
Why is it divided into "land" and "sea"? What are
the similarities and differences between them? It turns out that the Overland
Silk Road was started by Zhang Qian sent by Emperor Wu of the Western Han
Dynasty (202 BC to 8 AD) to the Western Regions two thousand years ago. It
started from Chang'an, passed through the Hexi Corridor to Central Asian
countries, and then entered the Mediterranean. In Rome, it was It is the end
point with a total length of 6,440 kilometers. It used to be called the
"Overland Silk Road", but now it is collectively called the "Land
Bridge".
Although there is some controversy as to who opened the second stage of
the "Silk Road", the more objective and historically based one is the
first navigation route map developed by Master Yijing (635-713), an eminent
monk in the Tang Dynasty. .
(1) In 671 AD (the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty),
Master Yijing received funding from the state official Feng Xiaoquan. In
November, he took a Persian merchant ship from Panyu (now Guangzhou) to Southern
Thailand Luokhun and Kedah Jitu. Passing through the Straits of Malacca, he
entered Melayu (Jambi, Indonesia), and then arrived in India, where he paid
homage at various holy places.
In 685 AD, Master Yijing returned to Panyu by boat. In November of the
same year, he went to Srivijaya to learn Buddhist scriptures. During that time,
Palembang was the royal capital. In 695 AD, Master Yijing said goodbye to the
ancient Buddha's country and returned to Luoyang, where he was welcomed by
Emperor Wu Zetian outside the east gate.
Master Yijing, together with Master Faxian (334-420) and Tang Xuanzang
(602-664) (Tang Sanzang in Journey to the West), were later known as the three
most famous eminent monks in China.
Dr. Benjamin F C Teng , who specializes in the history of Master Yijing
(PhD in EEC from the University of Queensland, Australia. His last full-time
position was associate research professor in electrical engineering at the
Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico, San Juan. Now retired, specializing in
Buddhism), in his book "Looking for the Footprints of Master Yijing"
said: In the Tang Dynasty, the ancient kingdom of Jietu (羯荼) was
already an important seaport, providing ships from China, India and Arab
countries for trade.
Soon after, archaeologists from USM discovered many cultural relics
from the Tang, Song and Yuan dynasties while excavating the ruins of the
ancient Kingdom of Jietu.
The Jietu Empire was located in the Buyang Valley of present-day Kedah,
an area 50 kilometers southwest of Alor Setar, covering an area of 400 square
kilometers. 87 ancient buildings have been unearthed, 60 of which are temples.
The government has also built a Buyang River Valley Archaeological Museum at
this location.
Master Yijing, who stayed in Kedah for about half a year, also left his
historical traces.
In addition to the "Yijing Cultural Forum" held in Jinan in
2023, Malaysia government will also co-organize the "Master Yijing
International Conference" with China on July 11. It will be a new chapter
for the dialogue between Muslim and Buddhism, and it will definitely be
confirmed from historical artifacts and records that the Chinese, Malay and
Indian people have lived together on this land very early on. Therefore, if any
politician who advocates racism can find traces of history in Buyang Valley, he
will certainly not have different prejudices against different races, nor will
he rashly believe that this country has always been a single race.
During the 289 years since the founding of the Tang Dynasty (618-907),
Southeast Asia was basically an Indianized country, such as Cambodia (Funan),
Vietnam (Champa), Pattani (Langkasuka) (now is a part of Thailand) and Kedah Jietu,
and later Srivijaya appeared in Indonesia (since the 9th century, Srivijaya
moved his capital to Jambi, and also occupied the Kingdom of Melayu. At the end
of the century, Srivijaya moved his capital to Jambi). Melayu later became a
special name for the Malays), Central Java (Shailendra Dynasty), Majapahit
Dynasty and the Mataram Kingdom in Java, etc.
These Indianized countries had declined by the 13th century (1207).
After this, the trend of Islam emerged in Malaya, which was the Malacca
dynasty founded by Parameswara in Malacca in 1402.
The incident happened at the end of the 14th century, when a prince
from Palembang, Parameswara could not bear the oppression of Majapahit (King of
Sumatra) (because he married the king's daughter), and finally went to war with
him. After the defeat, Parameswara fled to Singapore (Temasek) to establish his
empire in Singapore, and was later driven out by the Siamese army. After
arriving in Malacca, an independent dynasty was established in Malacca (1403).
He was originally a Hindu, but after converting to Islam, he changed
his name to Iskandar Shah. In this way, Islam entered Southeast Asia. In order
to seek protection from China, Parameswara arrived in Nanjing (Jinling) in
1405, confirming the friendly relations between Malaysia and China. Malaya also
became the main territory of Islam in the future, replacing Hinduism. However,
the Chinese who came from the south brought Buddhism and Taoism, and they have
been preserved sporadically in various places.
(2) After Malaya evolved from Indianization to a Muslim country, its
friendly relations with China did not change.
In 1405, after Ming Chengzu (the fourth son of Zhu Yuanzhang) Zhu Di
gained power in a coup, he favored Zheng He. Because Zheng He helped Zhu Di to
ascend the throne in the chaos, he changed his original name from Ma Sanbao to
Zheng He in 1404. and. From then on this man became a household name in
history.
Ma Sanbao was originally just a eunuch, but later he was honored as
"Sanbao Eunuch".
Also in this year 1405, imperial approve Zheng He led more than 7,000
soldiers and carried the emperor's edict and a large amount of gold, silk,
porcelain and other cultural relics into 62 large wooden ships depart from
Liujiagang (Liuhe Kou, Jiangsu Province), passing through Fujian and traveling
along the South China Sea. They arrived Champa (southern Vietnam), and then
successively reached countries along the Southeast Asian and Indian Ocean
coasts. Every time he visited a country, Zheng He proclaimed the imperial edict
of the Ming Dynasty emperor to show the greatness of China.
Zheng He's navigation career ended in 1433, a period of 28 years.
During this period, Zheng He made a total of 7 voyages, 5 of which passed
through the Strait of Malacca. In addition to having a huge armed force, its
footprints also reach as far as the east coast of Africa.
According to a passage in "Speeches on Chinese History"
published by historian Lin Lian in 1961, this is how Zheng He's trip was
described:
"Zheng He sailed seven times and passed through 36 countries. His
work was arduous. Not only had to fight rough waves, but also had to use force
to deal with hostile forces when necessary.
Zheng He's mission to the West also greatly opened up China's market in
the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asian Islands. His voyage was not only an unprecedented
feat in Chinese history, but also a great action in the history of world
navigation. "
(It is the important strategic position of the Indian Ocean and the
South China Sea that today has become the core area for the United States to
suppress and contain the rise of China’s military power)
Even though Zheng He discovered the new land 80 years before Columbus,
some people question why China does not occupy any land outside? It only
highlights its national prestige and spends an uncalculated amount of money.
Does it mean that China does not have the ambition to invade? In addition, if
that the Chinese are very narrow-minded and overconfident, and have never
thought of expanding territory?
Later, some descendants did not understand that Western countries were describe
of being "politically correct" when they invaded other countries brought
civilization and development; on the contrary, China did not occupy any land,
but suffered a hundred years of humiliation later on.
Some people argue that if China had taken the initiative to seize
uncultivated land and bring civilization and development during the Zheng He
era, the world would definitely not be what it is today, and the importance of
Columbus would not be so highlighted.
Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) was born in Italy. In 1492, he was
approved by the Queen of Spain to go to India and China. Returned without
success in 1493.
He returned to Spain in 1496 and did not settle in America until his
fourth voyage. In this way, he discovered the New World of America, which later
became the United States. This is the most important page in the history of
Western colonial expansion. In comparison, China's feudal dynasty is far behind.
(3) It is a pity that China has failed to realise that the ancient
feudal ideology is resistant and even detrimental to China's breakthrough
development. For example, the dynastic thinking of successive Chinese dynasties
can be summed up: "Under the sky, there is no place other than the king's
land". The Chinese people finally paid a heavy price for this feudal
ideology.
To prevent the invasion of the Huns, the Great Wall was built during
the Qin Dynasty. Basically, it was to cut off the invasion of foreign enemies (but
it later proved unable to prevent the invasion of the Mongols and the
establishment of the Yuan Dynasty, and the invasion of the Manchus to establish
the Qing Dynasty. It was really the biggest irony of the feudal dynasty). But
in that era, the north could only be incorporated into China later. ethnic Huns
and other ethnic minorities. On the contrary, China made the most serious
mistake during the feudal dynasty era, that is, during the Ming and Qing
dynasties, it implemented around 400-year maritime ban and was isolated from
the outside world. How could it know the world's affairs?
For example, the Ming Dynasty implemented a sea ban for 196 years from
1371 to 1567. The main purpose was to prevent Japanese pirates from invading,
thereby cutting off the sea routes so that Japan could not succeed.
During the Qing Dynasty, maritime bans were also implemented from 1655
to 1840, a total of 185 years.
The maritime ban in the Ming and Qing dynasties was both to prevent
foreign invasion, but was it possible to prevent it? Looking back now, I only
feel that the thoughts of the feudal emperors were stupid and backward. They
didn't know that there was a heaven outside the world and there were countries
abroad. At the same time, the most serious thing is that 70% of the world is
ocean and only 30% is land. Excluding the Antarctic and Arctic, deserts and
uninhabited jungles, there is not much space left on land.
The most serious thing is that when China banned the import of opium
from Britain in 1838, it was a just and just action to stop opium from
poisoning the people. However, the British businessmen made strong excuses and
accused China of harming the interests of British businessmen. The Opium War
broke out in 1840 without adequate armed forces. In this battle, the Qing
government was defeated. In addition to ceding land compensation and ceding
Hong Kong Island to the United Kingdom, the United Kingdom also forced China to
open Guangzhou, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Ningbo, and Shanghai as treaty ports.
From that time on, the Chinese were destined to become tragic figures.
During the Second Opium War in 1860, the Old Summer Palace was not only burned
down, but the Kowloon Peninsula was ceded to the British.
Later, in 1894, the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 broke out. The Qing
government suffered another defeat and Taiwan was occupied by Japan. After
this, the Qing court learned from the painful experience and followed Japan's
example in promoting the Westernization Movement (Japan's Meiji Restoration
began in 1858 and ended in 1889, making Japan a military power. The Qing
court's Westernization Movement began after the Second Opium War (from 1861 to
1895, all the Qing court's warships were wiped out). The Qing court's efforts to
learn from west were totally defeated again by the Eight-Power Allied Forces in
the Boxer Rebellion in 1900. The Chinese had now fallen into the quagmire of
the First World War (1914-1918), and the result was that the United States, the
Soviet Union, and Britain divided their interests sadly. China's Revolution of
1911 (1911) did not bring substantial benefits to China. Instead, it formed a
warlord regime. It was not until the end of the Kuomintang-Communist War in
1949 that the winner was determined.
After liberation, China was impoverished, and unfortunately encountered
the Korean War, which also disrupted China's strategy of liberating Taiwan. It
was not until the end of the Cultural Revolution in 1976 that China entered an
era of peace and construction.
In this process, we saw that in 1916, the first Eurasian Continental
Bridge was built by Russia, from Vladivostok to Harbin, and then to countries
such as Moscow and Germany. However, this was a Soviet project and had nothing
to do with China.
It was not until 1990 that the second Eurasian Continental Bridge
appeared, from Lianyungang in Jiangsu to Russia and Germany. It was officially
opened to traffic in 1992, demonstrating China's train achievements.
Then, during the 40 years of reform and opening up (1978-2018), China
has been reborn and become another new China, which also involves the
improvement of Chinese trains entering the planning and adjustment period. In
China, planning started from 1997 to 2007, and there were a total of six major
train speed increases. In the plan, the current four vertical and four
horizontal buildings will be developed into eight vertical and eight horizontal
buildings. The first phase has been completed ahead of schedule in 2020; and
the second phase will be completed in 2030. By that time, China's domestic
trains will not only extend in all directions, but their speed will also be
greatly increased, becoming a veritable "high-speed rail".
As for the China-Europe trains connecting with Europe, the Chinese are
even more proud of it, because it is the most important breakthrough in
reaching the United States' backyard. Since the China-Europe freight train sign
was put up in 2016, freight trains have traveled to major cities and ports in
China, and have also reached 160 cities in 22 European countries. China hopes
that by 2035, it will become the world's leading train champion. In this
regard, China believes that future high-speed rail will illuminate the way
forward for mankind.
China-Europe trains enter Europe via freight trains. The charges are
not only cheaper than sea and air transportation, but also more environmentally
friendly. The carbon dioxide emissions generated by the trains are only 4%.
According to the standards of high-speed rail, only those with a speed
of more than 200 kilometers per hour can be called "high-speed rail"
in China. However, the modern world has higher requirements, and high-speed
rail with a speed of 350 kilometers per hour has also appeared. High-speed rail
has changed China and the world's transportation network.
This is a dynamic world, but only peace can allow us to see the future,
and war is the end of the world.
Before ending, I have a few additional comments on the “Belt and Road
Initiative”:
First, during the Qing Dynasty, there was no interest in gadgets from
the West. For example, in 1876, the British company Jardine Matheson built a
14.5-kilometer long train from Shanghai to Wusong, but it was bought and destroyed
by the Qing government in 1877. It's incredible.
It was not until 1905 that the first train built by the Chinese
appeared in China. It ran from Beijing to Zhangjiajie, Hunan, with a total
length of 222 kilometers and was opened to traffic in 1908. This person was
engineer Zhan Tianyou who later became famous all over the world. He graduated
from Oxford University.
However, the Sino-Japanese War broke out in 1937, which severely
damaged the railway, leaving only 3,793 kilometers operational. After the war
(1945), the civil war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party broke out,
and more railways were abandoned and destroyed.
After liberation in 1949, there were 8,278 kilometers of trains
available.
By 1980, the number of railways nationwide reached 49,940 kilometers;
by 1990, it had increased to 66,428 kilometers. This confirms that China is
making great strides under the reform and opening up.
In 1994, China's train speed was only 48 kilometers per hour. But in
1998, Qinhuangdao and Shenyang conducted experiments to prove the feasibility
of domestic high-speed rail. In 2003, they successfully launched a high-speed
rail with a speed of over 200 kilometers per hour.
In 2016, the China-Europe freight train was launched, and it was clear
that Chinese freight trains had entered the backyard of the United States. As
of today, freight volume has exceeded 200 billion US dollars. Since the
connection with Europe, 40,000 trains have been operated.
In China, the number of passenger and freight trains has also grown to
23, and now China is concerned about how to complete the Trans-Asian Railway.?
According to the original plan, the construction of the Kuala
Lumpur–Singapore high-speed rail should start in 2018 and is expected to open
in 2026, with a total length of 327.7 kilometres, 15 kilometres of which will
be through a tunnel into Singapore..
At that time, the government did not announce the cost because the
relevant projects had not yet been invited to bid. I wonder who would win the
project? The biggest competitors are China and Japan. General estimates put the
cost at no less than RM100 billion.
Unfortunately, Mahathir, who was on behalf of Pakatan Harapan coalition
won the 2018 general election, after returning to power. He announced the
cancellation of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail because Malaysia
could not afford its huge cost. At that time, some people estimated that it
would cost around RM101 billion.
With the termination of the high-speed rail, Malaysia must compensate
Singapore for more than 300 million ringgit.
At the same time, the Mahathir government also announced the
cancellation of three gas and oil pipelines built by China, the first is the
Multi-Petroleum Products Pipeline (MPP), the second is the Sabah Natural Gas
Pipeline (TSGP), and the third is from Malacca to Johor. Oil refinery
pipelines, totaling up to $1.8 billion.
Although some people proposed to restart the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore
high-speed rail during the Anwar period and extend it to Bangkok, Thailand, the
cost is unknown. The government has also been silent.
It is known that the only major project left by the Chinese government
is the construction of the East Rail Link (estimated to cost RM40 billion).
We recall that when the Second Bridge was built in Penang in 1994, then
Prime Minister Abdullah reached an agreement with Chinese Prime Minister Wen
Jiabao. China loaned US$800 million to jointly build the bridge, and the total
cost was RM4.5 billion.
When will the “One Belt, One Road” overall plan be completed? We are
also looking forward to it.
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