China39;s foreign minister visits Hanoi amid plans for Xi39;s trip
Upgraded rail link would connect China to Haiphong
China is top investor in Vietnam despite maritime tensions

HANOI, Dec 1 Reuters China and Vietnam are working on a possible significant upgrade of their underdeveloped rail links to boost a line that crosses Vietnam39;s rare earths heartland and reaches the country39;s top port in the north, senior officials and diplomats said.

The talks are part of preparations for a possible visit to Hanoi in coming weeks by Chinese President Xi Jinping, officials and diplomats said, which would further confirm Vietnam39;s increasingly strategic role in global supply chains as major powers including the United States vie to gain influence there.

Deeper trade ties and railways connections are expected to be discussed on Friday as China39;s top diplomat Wang Yi meets Vietnam39;s Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang in Hanoi, diplomats said.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh called for the upgrade of the railway linking Kunming in southern China to Vietnam39;s port city of Haiphong in a statement released last month, after China39;s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao made a rare visit to Vietnam.

Chinese officials have stressed the importance of boosting infrastructure connectivity with their southern neighbour.

Vietnam has already rail connections to China, but the system is old with limited capacity on the Vietnam side. The two systems are also not…