Rail pact key to pan-Asian network vision

Analysts highlight strategic importance of link in fostering regional connectivity

China's partnership with Malaysia is crucial not only to building the latter's key rail projects but also for the growth of a pan-Asian rail network, analysts say.

Peter Chang, deputy director of the Institute of China Studies at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur, said the idea of a railway linking the west and east coasts of Peninsular Malaysia has been developing for many years.

"China's technological expertise is now making this vision a reality," Chang said.