Thai Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont said on Sunday that he would confer on construction of a railway line linking northern Thailand with China's Yunnan Province via Laos during his talks with Chinese leaders.

Surayud is scheduled to leave for China on Monday for a two-day official visit, during which he will discuss with Chinese leaders about building a railway line to link China's southern Yunnan province and Chiang Khong district in Thailand's Chiang Rai province via Ban Houei Sai district of Laos.

Currently, a highway links the two sites of China and Laos, and the Thai government has earlier agreed with Beijing to build a bridge across the Mekong river to open the way between Chiang Khong and Ban Houei Sai.

The highway and the future bridge will facilitate travel by cars and long distance trucks, Surayud was quoted by the state-run Thai News Agency as saying, adding that his proposal to construct the railway line would expand existing transportation networks.

Source: Xinhua