China showcases world’s most advanced high-speed trains

High-speed rail workers and enthusiasts will have a chance to see and discuss the latest developments in rail technology in China next year.

China is set to host the 12th UIC World Congress on High-Speed Rail in July. The theme of the conference is “High-Speed Rail: Innovation and Development for a Better Life” and will feature international participants discussing global challenges to, and developments in, railway technology and sustainability.

The formal program for the convention has not been released, but previous years have involved showcasing new forms of rail financing, new track technologies, and innovation in speed. The 2025 conference is open to paper submissions now. China also hosted the conference in Beijing in 2010.

“China has constructed the world’s most extensive HSR [high-speed rail] network with the highest level of modernization, and established a complete set of world-leading HSR technology system, successfully launching the era of intelligent HSR,” said Guo Zhuxue, chairman of the China State Railway Group Co.

The conference is occurring amid international tensions with China, as the incoming Trump administration has threatened a 60 percent tariff on Chinese goods and a potential trade war with China over production.

There are four American members of the UIC (Internation Union of Railways)—Amtrak, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the Association of American Railroads and the California High Speed Rail Authority—but their participation in the conference is yet to be determined.

“While this event is of interest to the FRA, our travel to the event cannot be confirmed at this time,” FRA Deputy Director of Public Affairs Warren Flatau told Newsweek. “In fact, formal invitations to the event with details have not even come out yet.”

Guo also spoke about China’s Belt and Road Initiative of building railways around the world, saying: “China has been proactively engaged in international railway cooperation. Landmark projects such as China-Laos Railway, Jakarta-Bandung HSR and Hungary-Serbia Railway (Belgrade-Novi Sad Section) have been completed and put into operation successively.”

Although Guo spoke about the projects as demonstrations of international cooperation, some of the infrastructure projects have resulted in controversies around Chinese international involvement.

In Hungary, critics of Prime Minister Viktor Orban have pointed to the railway as proof that he places cooperation with China over a relationship with NATO.

In recent years, several members of the UIC have been suspended from the union and will not be attending next year’s conference unless their membership is reinstated.

Those suspended are six railway and transportation institutes from Russia, the Sudanese Railway Corporation, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Transportation Office, the Malaysian Railway Assets Corporation, the Belarusian Railway, the Libya Railway Executive Board, the Ministry of Transport and Railway Society of Indonesia, Syrian Hedjaz Railway and a North Macedonian transportation company.

Per RailTarget, Russian and Belarusian transit companies have been suspended since 2022 because of the war in Ukraine.

It is unclear why or when other companies and government offices were suspended from the UIC. Newsweek contacted the UIC for comment.

The official list of attendees to the 2025 conference has not been released.

“As an old Chinese saying goes, ‘It is always a delight to have friends coming from afar,’ Guo said. “We look forward to seeing you in Beijing, China, in July 2025!”

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