MAGAZINE

But such actions yield little or no financial
benefits and some countries have to revise
their existing infrastructure. Hence this strategy
must not be the prime pillar for Japan’s
savoir-faire.
Besides providing technical aid to international
allies, Japan must fixate upon imparting
its high-speed rail and bullet train technology.
Owing to Colonial regime in the past
, most countries in Southeast Asia house narrow
(1.435 m) or meter gauge lines restricting
speed to 160 km/h, while nations which have
broad gauge (1.676 m) lines miss out on operational
requirements like safety signals, automation
infrastructure, and conditions like
tracks, slope and curve radius do not fit highspeed
requirements.
Countries like India, ergo, which aspire to have
high-speed rail systems, can benefit from Japanese
technology and experience of successful
operations. Additionally, construction of
high-speed networks furnishes capabilities of
establishing industrial corridors and special
economic zones.
Japan has a tremendous safety record and
several domestic technological marvels like
the mini-Shinkansen, which has lower construction
requirements, as well as the anticipated
maglev project, which is currently
under construction and foreseen to begin
services in 2020.
Tokyo has, thus, the technological monopoly of pursuing foreign solidarity over the
High-Speed Rail projects. Despite of the alluring technology,
Japan has in past faced competition from the much-cheaper Chinese alternative, like
the loss of contract for Indonesian high-speed rail to China; although, it seems to have
taken its cue and furnished highly attractive debt conditions for India’s first High Speed
Rail project and offered exhaustive assistance for the construction of the project. China
utilizes its Political dominance, geostrategic presence as well as the fact that railways are
state-owned, beside a rapidly expanding economy to garner its Rail ties.
29 / Rail Analysis / International Focus / May 2016
Presently, both China and Japan are vying for overseas high-speed enterprises and have
already been associated with Thai Rail projects, as China has partnered with Indonesia
and California (the U.S.) while Japan is affiliated with the U.K. and recently, India where
Chinese authorities were catalyzed to sweep the venture.
The upcoming rail link between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur could demonstrate a turning
point, as both countries have strong ties with the recipients. This would ink a litmus
test of the role that Railways play in diplomacy extended Japan.