SUZHOU — Leaders from Central and Eastern European (CEE) nations will be invited to a ride on a China-made bullet train, Premier Li Keqiang said on Nov 24 during an annual China-CEE summit meeting in Suzhou city, east China.

The train ride on Nov 25 will be a showcase of China-CEE cooperation, which features not only a high speed, but also comfort and reassurance, Premier Li told reporters.

China has actively sought to export its high-speed rail technology in recent years, with media referring to the Premier as the country’s top railway salesman.

The invitation came minutes after China signed two separate deals with Hungary and Serbia on the construction and revamping of a rail link between the Serbian and Hungarian capitals.

Details of the two deals are not immediately available, but Premier Li had pledged earlier in the day that construction work of the railway would be under way by the end of this year and be finished within two years.

Earlier reports said the high-speed rail link could cut travel time between Budapest and Belgrade by more than half.

Once complete, the railway will help create a fast lane for importing and exporting products between China and Europe.

“The railway not only connects Serbia with Hungary, it also links up to the rail network in southern Europe,” Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic told reporters later on Nov 24.