The Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway jointly built by China and Indonesia, the first high-speed railway in Southeast Asia and a landmark project of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), started trial operation on Nov 16.

The 142.3-kilometer high-speed railway built by Chinese companies connects the Indonesian capital with the country's fourth-largest city. It is scheduled to fully open in the middle of next year. It will be the first modern high-speed railway to start operation in Southeast Asia, and also the first high-speed railway project under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative that China has completed overseas.

Shandong Port Group (SPG), the world's largest port conglomerate in terms of cargo capacity, is playing an important role in the successful trial operation of the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway.

The first high-speed bullet trains and comprehensive inspection trains left SPG's Qingdao Port on August 21 and arrived at the Port of Jakarta in Indonesia after 11 days of travel. Qingdao Port has sent two vessels containing high-speed bullet trains for the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway. The last train shipment will be sent this month.

SPG is located at the intersection of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. It serves as a "bridgehead" between Japan, South Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) under the the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, or RCEP, as well as the most convenient shipping outlet in the Yellow River basin. SPG has been playing an important role in promoting the high-quality development of the BRI.

Blessed with superior location advantages, SPG has served the national strategy as its mission, strengthened its overall awareness and responsibility, and consciously served key projects such as the BRI. In the past three years, SPG has opened 328 shipping routes, including 234 foreign trade routes, 87 of which are serving countries and regions involved in the BRI, and 120 connected RCEP member countries.

The first high-speed bullet trains and comprehensive inspection trains for the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway leave SPG's Qingdao Port on August 21. [Photo/WeChat account: Shandong-Port]