New section of Chongqing-Xiamen high-speed railway starts operation

The Chongqing East to Qianjiang section of the Chongqing-Xiamen High-Speed Railway, a key part of China's high-speed rail network, began operation on Friday.

The Chongqing East to Qianjiang section starts at Chongqing East Railway Station and passes through the areas such as Nanan District, Wulong District, and Qianjiang District. It connects to the Qianjiang Railway Station of the Qianjiang-Zhangjiajie-Changde high-speed railway.

The main line is 242 km long, with a designed speed of 350 km per hour. Travel time from Chongqing to Changsha can be as short as three hours and 53 minutes, which is another fast passenger transport route between the Chengdu-Chongqing economic circle and the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan area.

"With the opening of the high-speed railway, travelers can reach Zhangjiajie from Chongqing East in two and a half hours and get to Changsha from Chengdu East in about six hours. This has established a new transport corridor connecting Chengdu, Chongqing, and Hunan, which is important for promoting rapid socio-economic development in the region," said Yang Zhiyong, commander of the Wulong Command Center of the Chongqing-Guizhou Chongqing-Wanzhou Railway Company.

Li Hongzhong, vice chairman of the National People's Congress Standing Committee, met with the European Parliament's delegation for relations with China led by chair Engin Eroglu in Beijing on Wednesday.

Li, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China is willing to work with the European Union (EU) to strengthen communication, enhance mutual trust, deepen cooperation, and pursue mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

He said China stands ready to join hands with the EU to address global challenges, promote exchanges and cooperation among legislative bodies, effectively utilize communication mechanisms, and advance the sound and stable development of China-EU relations.

Eroglu said the EU stands ready to work with China to contribute to the development of EU-China relations.